Baby Boom!
by Mariann's
Summary: Remus and Sirius fall in love, grow up and fight Voldemort - will they succeed? Complete
1. 01 Remus

Title: Baby Boom! 1/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
Baby Boom!  
  
1. Remus  
  
When Venetia Lupin noticed she was pregnant again she had mixed feelings. Together with her husband Richard she already had four children, the youngest of them was now twelve and in her second year at Hogwarts. But she could not get herself to terminate the pregnancy and when the baby was born in September 1959 it turned out to be the cutest baby boy anyone could want. Richard and Venetia named him Remus.   
  
Remus' older siblings, Richard Jr., seventeen, Samantha, fifteen, Roxanne, fourteen and Julia, twelve, had to leave for Hogwarts just days before their youngest sibling was born. Richard was this year's head boy, a Hufflepuff, Samantha had followed her mother into Ravenclaw, Roxanne and Julia were Gryffindors like their father. They were not happy. On the platform they all chided their mother gently.  
  
"How unfair! We wanted to see the baby, mum!" Samantha said.   
  
"Well, I can't force it out before it's time, love, you know that it's the baby who says when it wants to join us. It won't be long and I promise that you'll be allowed to come home over the weekend to meet it, alright?"  
  
"I don't suppose we can get anything better than that, mum, so - yes, it's alright. Love you!"  
  
"I love you, too, Sam, have a good term! I'll miss you all, as usual."  
  
All four children back at Hogwarts gave Venetia a few days to recover from the stressful summer months and get ready for the birth. Remus made it easy for his mum and came smoothly and quickly. Richard was happy about his second son. He held Remus on his arm and beamed at his wife. Then he teased her:  
  
"It's about time that the contents of testosterone in this household rises a bit! You ladies are keeping us much too downtrodden!"  
  
"What about Sam's boyfriend, eh? He was around for most of the break, I was already beginning to wonder if he had been chucked out at home."  
  
Richard chuckled and replied:  
  
"Nick doesn't really count. He's all nice and everything, but he's completely under Sam's thumb! I saw his mother at the Ministry a couple of times, she was fairly glad that she got some news about her son from me! He must have been missed there after all."  
  
"Well, both of his parents are fully working and he's an only child, so it might have been very good that he spent a lot of time here, at least he was under someone's supervision" Venetia remarked.  
  
Richard nodded and blew a little kiss on baby Remus' forehead.  
  
"You've just got yourself in deep trouble, little one! You were born into some hell of a family! There are three teenage girls and they'll all smother you with their love, believe me! Not to speak of your mum and myself."  
  
Richard was hard to be separated from his baby. It was even harder for him to return to his work at the Ministry after his leave. The first weekend after Remus was born he went to get his older children from Hogwarts. As expected the girls were completely taken with the baby. Remus got cuddled and pampered day in and day out. Fortunately he was a very calm child. He hardly ever cried, took most things in stride and just looked at everyone in the family with his huge brown eyes. Eyes that were mostly brown with some dark green flecks inside. He was the perfect mixture between his parents who both had light brown hair, Venetia's with a touch of blond inside. She had green eyes, her husband had dark brown eyes, Remus' were something in between.   
  
The baby grew into a delightful little boy who charmed his parents and siblings alike. He was everyone's favourite and it was hard to say who spoiled him more, his parents or his siblings. But over all Remus remained to be a quiet child who loved to hear stories and who read quite fluently at the age of three and started writing at the age of four. His first magic showed when he was barely two and everyone in the family recognised he would be a brilliant kid.   
  
But when he was four a tragic event changed his life dramatically. His parents took him for a camping trip to the Italian Alps over Easter while the older children were at Hogwarts or working. Young Richard had become an Auror and was on duty over the holidays, Samantha was out on a vacation with her latest boyfriend, Roxanne and Julia were still at Hogwarts.   
  
It happened in the last night, when little Remus left the protected campground and snuck out to take a little walk in the nearby forest. Half the campers on the campground joined his parents in the search for him. They all froze, when they saw Remus being attacked by a wolf. Two of the wizards who were in the group quickly cast a spell to kill the wolf, but Remus had already been mauled. The dead wolf shifted back to a human and in that moment everyone present knew that Remus had been bitten by a werewolf.   
  
The little boy survived, but the whole world around him seemed to have changed. A beast raged inside of him, causing him to become a mixture between a human being and an animal. He quickly noticed that his senses were sharpened. He would often cry out at noises, which were much louder to his ears than to anyone else's. He had to adjust to olfactory senses ten times stronger than those of a human. His eyes changed subtly, anyone who looked into them closer could notice them turning to a much lighter brown, with a golden undertone.   
  
There were of course legal consequences. Remus had to be registered as a werewolf. He had to be brought into the Registry at regular intervals and he was taught what it meant to be a werewolf. It took him only about a month to realise that everyone he met and knew about his condition treated him with distrust and sometimes open hostility. He cried a lot in those weeks and when he transformed for the first time it was the most traumatic experience in his life after the bite. Up until the bite there had been nothing but love and sunshine in his life. After the bite he felt like he had been dropped into a dark hole.  
  
But everyone in his family continued loving him, if possible they all became more protective of the little werewolf. He was their 'cub' and they wouldn't let him be miserable when he couldn't go to a regular school. Venetia taught him at home and whatever she taught him he sucked up.   
  
And both parents decided that their beloved child needed siblings closer to his own age. Two years after Remus' bite they had another son, whom they named Rupert. Remus was happy to have a little brother to pamper. He turned out to be a very protective older brother and watched out for Rupert as well as he could.   
  
"Mum, Rupert's awake," he'd call, "Can I take him out of the cradle?"  
  
He was allowed to do many little things with the baby and it helped him over the distress of having to stay at home most of the time.   
  
Rupert was almost two when another baby arrived. It was yet another son who was named Rowland. Venetia smiled when she looked at the baby and asked Richard:  
  
"Well, are you happy now? The males win out in this household - at least in terms of head count!"   
  
Richard only laughed. He loved his daughters deeply, but he had a lot of fun with his little sons. He was quite glad that in the meantime all four of his older children were standing on their own feet. He himself had done quite well at the Ministry and fortunately the fact that he had a lycanthropic son had not hindered his career there. He was now the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and earned a very good salary.   
  
Remus grew up. He was a curious child who read an awful lot and his favourite outings were to the nearest Muggle library to get more books. He had a fairly well sized library of his own already, mostly magical, but he loved to read everything he could lay his eyes on. This pleased Venetia who took good care of Remus. She was there in the mornings after his transformations to free him from his cellar prison as soon as the moon had set. She healed him and learned everything there was to know about werewolves in the course of the first few years her son was one. She had found a lot of tricks to heal what wounds remained after the moon set. She learned that most of his wounds would heal within an hour after moonset, but the worst ones needed to be healed magically. Remus looked frail and his growth had been held up because of his transformations. They proved simply too much for him to grow regularly. But he was never ill. Apart from the transformations he was as healthy as any boy could be. And he was a very crafty little one. There was quite a lot of mischief in him, which was usually poured over his big sisters.   
  
While Sam took that in stride, Roxanne and Julia paid Remus back in pranks. Remus adored them, because they wouldn't treat him like an invalid.  
  
"Bet you anything, he'll be in Gryffindor!" Julia said one Sunday morning at the breakfast the family liked to share when Remus was nine.  
  
There was abrupt silence around the table. Julia looked up, saw the sad expression on her parents' faces and asked:  
  
"Did I say something wrong?"  
  
Remus looked down on his plate stoically, saying nothing, but Julia detected a few tears on his cheeks.   
  
"What?" she asked again and stroked Remus' cheek.  
  
"Remus won't be able to go to Hogwarts..." Richard finally said in a small voice.  
  
"What? Why not? He's a magical child! Just because he's a werewolf? Is that the reason?"  
  
Venetia nodded sadly.  
  
"We've inquired carefully with the Registry and the school governors. The Registry sees no reason why he should not go, the school governors don't really see one either, especially with his spotless record, but when we asked Dippet we were practically thrown out of his office," Richard explained, "and it's Dippet who decides."  
  
"Oh no! I'm so sorry, Remus! I didn't know that! I can't believe that anyone can be so mean to you. You're only a child!"  
  
"We've tried to reason, that he can be detained during the full moons, but he belongs to the sort of people who are more than prejudiced. If it were for him he'd not even let Muggle-born children into the school and he barely tolerates half-bloods," Venetia said.  
  
Her voice sounded pressed. She was still seething from the conversation they had with the headmaster. She had told him what she thought of him in the end and that was not nice.   
  
Their inquiries at Beauxbatons had been just as fruitless. No school wanted to take a werewolf, no matter how spotless his record was. Remus had fallen into a depression upon learning that he was not allowed to go to any magical school. He would be allowed training at home but it was nowhere near the kind of education his parents wished for him to have.  
  
Then he turned eleven and barely two months after his birthday Armando Dippet died suddenly of old age. The school governors and the Wizengamot appointed Deputy Headmaster Albus Dumbledore to be Dippet's successor. Dumbledore found a replacement for his Transfigurations classes in an old friend and former student, Minerva McGonagall. Minerva also took on the Deputy Headmistress' job and the head of Gryffindor, both of which Albus vacated as well.   
  
One of his first tasks was taking out the Hogwarts Book of Names, where the enchanted quill noted all births of magical children and looking for children who were supposed to start their Hogwarts education the next year, because he knew that there was at least one who had not received a letter yet. He had tried to reason with Dippet on Remus' behalf, but his superior would have none of it. Albus sighed and had Minerva send a letter to the boy.   
  
"But Albus! The boy is a werewolf!" she said.  
  
"And so?"  
  
"It's not that I would deny the child an education, but think of the other children! Think of the parents of the other children! I'm sure that many parents would take their children out of the school if they knew that we admitted such a creature."  
  
"That is why we will keep it a secret. - Minerva, I already have an idea of how to keep the castle, the children and the staff safe when Remus Lupin has to transform. I plan to meet the young man personally before he comes to school. I've met his parents before, they're wonderful people and I know they have been distressed by the fact that Armando did not want to accept their son to school. Besides, they had talked to the Registry and the School Governors before and neither institution were opposing the idea. It was really only Dippet. If Remus is anything like his four older siblings he'll be a very good student, Minerva."  
  
"Oh. Alright. If you have ideas about that, then I'm fine with it, Albus. What house were his older siblings? Have they left already, I don't know of any student by the name of Lupin..."  
  
"Yes, they are considerably older. There is a twelve year gap between Remus and his older sister. The oldest son was a Hufflepuff, one daughter was in Ravenclaw and the two younger daughters were Gryffindors. And there are two more boys after Remus."  
  
Minerva smiled.  
  
"Anything possible then."  
  
"Definitely anything. If you would hand me the boy's letter when you are done with it, then I will talk to Richard Lupin first before giving it to Remus."  
  
"Certainly, Albus!"  
  
In the afternoon of a cold grey winter day Albus Dumbledore left his office, an admittance letter for Remus Lupin in his pocket, to have a short conversation with Richard Lupin. He was welcomed at the Department by Richard's secretary who told him, that the Head of the Department was not available.  
  
"I can wait for a while, Rhiannon. Do I remember you as a Hufflepuff student who left Hogwarts, let me see, if I remember this right... 1958, is that right?"  
  
"That's right, Professor. - I will see, what I can do, but Mr. Lupin is in a meeting with his subordinates at the moment. It could take another hour or so."  
  
"Then be so kind and ask him to give me ten minutes only. It is about his son Remus."  
  
"Okay."  
  
The secretary got up after asking Albus to take a seat. She went to the conference room and interrupted the meeting to ask Richard back to her office.  
  
"It's Professor Dumbledore, sir, he says it's about your son Remus and would only take about ten minutes."  
  
Richard's ears perked up and he said:  
  
"We'll take a break and continue in fifteen minutes. I'll be right back!"  
  
He followed Rhiannon back to her office and greeted Dumbledore. Being a member of the Wizengamot he knew that Dumbledore had taken over as the new Headmaster of Hogwarts.  
  
"Professor! How nice to see you again!" he said and shook hands with Dumbledore.  
  
"Richard! Surely you have left Hogwarts long enough by now to call me Albus!"  
  
"Fine, Albus, I'll do that gladly. Rhiannon said you wanted to see me because of Remus?"  
  
Richard showed Albus to his office and offered him a seat. Albus pulled the letter out of his pocket, before he sat down and replied:  
  
"Do you think your son would like to receive this letter? I had tried to argue with Dippet about accepting Remus to Hogwarts, but he would have nothing of it."  
  
Richard sighed.  
  
"We tried everything, Albus, but he wouldn't budge. Remus has accepted not to go to Hogwarts, but he's still very depressed about it. He's a very talented boy and I'm quite sure he'd make a good student. He has a solid mind in that little head of his and loves to learn. And I have the suspicion that there is quite a lot of magical power inside of him as well."  
  
"I am quite sure he will take the chance then. So, if you would like to warn your wife I would like to pay her and young Remus a visit."  
  
"Now?"  
  
"Now."  
  
"Good. Let me give her a fire call then."  
  
That done, Albus apparated to the Lupins' house directly from the Ministry. He knocked on the door, which was opened after a moment by a little boy who looked barely older than eight to Albus.  
  
"Hello!" the boy said.  
  
"Good afternoon, young master. May I come in to speak with your mother?"  
  
"Please do! I'll call her right away."  
  
The boy opened the door wider and let Dumbledore in.  
  
'Very polite child,' Albus thought and wondered if that was Remus.  
  
Venetia turned up immediately and welcomed him, leading him to the family room.   
  
"It's such a cold day, would you join us for tea, Professor?"  
  
"Thank you, Venetia, I would not turn down a cup! And please, call me Albus."  
  
"I'll be right back with the tea, Albus!"  
  
Venetia went to the kitchen, put a tray with biscuits and five cups together and added a pot of tea. Then she went back to the family room and called for Remus, Rupert and Rowland.  
  
"Remus, come inside here for tea, please!"  
  
The boy came back into the family room, his two little brothers in tow, looking a bit shy and sat down on an armchair next to his mother. He looked at the visitor out of the corner of his eyes.   
  
"No need to be shy, Remus, this is Professor Albus Dumbledore. Albus, this is Remus."  
  
"I am pleased to meet you, young Mr. Lupin. I have come to see you."  
  
"Are you the same Professor Dumbledore who was my siblings' Transfigurations teacher?" Remus asked with interest and added: "Sir?"  
  
Dumbledore smiled and confirmed that.  
  
"That is precisely who I am."  
  
"Oh," was all Remus could reply.   
  
He took the cup from his mother who added a chocolate biscuit and then his face wasn't seen for a while. He looked down on his cup and nibbled on the biscuit.  
  
"Hogwarts is a bit of a sad subject in front of Remus. You probably know why, Albus."  
  
"Yes, I do know why. But never give up hope, Remus, because as I said, I came to see you. Look, what I have for you here! It might be the remedy to your heartache."  
  
Remus looked up, just in time to see the Professor pull a letter from his robes, which he handed over to the boy. Venetia caught his cup in time before it shattered on the floor and placed it on the table. Remus stared at the letter, then he looked up to Dumbledore and asked, just to make sure:  
  
"Is that letter really for me?"  
  
"Yes, as far as I know it has your name on the envelope. You should open it, Remus."  
  
Remus stared at the envelope for a moment longer. Mr. R.J. Lupin, Cub's Den, Halford House, Wales. His name, his address, even the nickname of his room. He smiled, but it quickly vanished as he opened the letter with trembling hands. Both adults watched him, his mother with baited breath. He carefully put the envelope on the table and unfolded the letter. Then he began to read. His face brightened immediately and by the time he turned to the second sheet he was beaming.   
  
"Is that really true?" he whispered.  
  
"Yes, Remus, that is really true. I can see that this means a lot to you?"  
  
Remus nodded.   
  
"Now, I take it that you would like to come to Hogwarts, would you not?"  
  
Another nod. Eager this time.  
  
"Very well. Then we will have to think of something to keep you and your fellow students as well as the staff safe on the nights of the full moon. I am sure I will come up with something that will serve all concerned parties."  
  
Remus finally looked up again and asked shakily:  
  
"Will the others know that I'm a werewolf?"  
  
"No. Only the staff will know and whoever you want to entrust with your secret. All else will not know."  
  
Remus sighed, relieved.  
  
After a nice conversation with Venetia Dumbledore took his leave. He returned to Hogwarts and called Poppy Pomfrey, the school's nurse to his office and explained her about Remus and what she would have to do for the boy once he started his schooling the next year.   
  
"I suggest you contact Venetia Lupin and learn what she does for her son. I hear there is quite a lot he needs after a transformation. It would be nice if you met them before he comes to school."  
  
"Oh, that poor child! Yes, I'll owl her and then we'll go from there."  
  
The first owl was followed by a meeting of the two ladies. One of her daughters watched over the three boys so Venetia could go to Hogwarts and talk with Poppy. The two ladies found common grounds immediately and a friendship was formed almost on the spot. Poppy promised to come and meet Remus after the next full moon night.   
  
Remus was in seventh heaven of happiness. Dumbledore had noticed right away that getting a chance for an education meant the world to him. The boy had glowed of happiness when he got the letter. When he was shown what had been planned for his transformations he accepted everything with only a few small questions and then he couldn't wait to go to Hogwarts. 


	2. 02 Off to School

Title: Baby Boom! 2/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
2. Off to school!  
  
Remus was accompanied to the train by his complete family, who saw to it that he was settled comfortably in a compartment and all wished him a good trip and a great start.  
  
"You'll do great, cub! And you'll love it there, just don't hide yourself too much, will you?" Richard Jr. told Remus.   
  
"I'll try, okay?"  
  
"Very good! I want to see some owls now and then, is that clear?"  
  
"Yes, sir!"  
  
Remus was alone in his compartment for the better part of the trip. He didn't mind at all, as he had something to read which kept him happy and occupied enough. He got changed to the school robes and had just finished that when two boys stormed into his compartment.  
  
"Sorry, do you mind if we hide out here for a while?" they asked and giggled.  
  
He looked at them. Both seemed to be around his age, even if both of them were considerably taller.  
  
"No, I don't mind," he said, "why do you need to hide?"  
  
"Oh, we just planted a dungbomb in the compartment of Sirius' evil cousins. Now they're on a rampage. I'm sure they'll turn up here soon, but I've got something to hide us. You just need to say you're alone!" one of the boys replied.  
  
"Who's Sirius?" Remus asked.   
  
"That would be me. Sirius Black. What's your name?"  
  
Sirius held out his hand and Remus took it.  
  
"Remus Lupin."  
  
"You look too small for a first year. But you are a first year, aren't you?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Yes, I am. You too?"  
  
"Yep!"  
  
The other boy pulled a silvery piece of fabric out of his pocket and said:  
  
"Come on, Siri, there's no time for flirting, let's get hidden!"  
  
He covered both of them with the fabric and Remus' eyes widened as he saw them vanish. From underneath he heard the other boy's voice:  
  
"By the way, I'm James Potter. You're not going to give us away, will you?"  
  
"No, I won't, but if you don't want to give yourself away then you should shut up!"  
  
"Will do!"  
  
The 'evil cousins' came and passed and passed again, but the two boys weren't visible, so they left. For the rest of the trip Sirius and James stayed under the Invisibility Cloak, but finally they left to gather their stuff and Remus saw them again from far when they left the train and were called over to Hagrid, who took them across the lake. Remus wasn't near the two boys at the Sorting, but he watched as Sirius was sent to Gryffindor. To his astonishment he saw that all the teachers ware staring after Sirius, whose cousin Bellatrix had just been sorted to Slytherin.  
  
Sirius seemed astonished himself, but he dropped the hat on the stool and walked over to the Gryffindor table, where he wasn't welcomed especially warmly. He didn't seem to care though and followed the Sorting with interest. Two girls were sorted into Gryffindor and then it was Remus' turn. He put the hat on his head. It whistled.  
  
"Well, hello there, young master Lupin. I've already had the pleasure to sort four siblings of yours, I thought I was through with your family."  
  
"There's two more after me. But it will take a while," Remus thought.  
  
"Ah, well. Now, what to do with you? All of your siblings were difficult to place, you know? You're a bunch of highly individual people, oh yes, you are! But there is a lot of potential in your head, you do like to learn, don't you?"  
  
"I do. I love to read."  
  
"And you are so very brave to face this school and the great handicap of your life... is that a bit of mischief I detect there? Hm. Now it gets easier. I think you'd be perfectly well placed in GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Remus grinned when he pulled the hat off his head and joined the table to a great amount of applause. He sat down next to Sirius.   
  
"Hey there, Remus! Wouldn't have thought to be in the same house as you are, but I think it's great!"  
  
"Hi Sirius. I'm happy to be here. Would have liked Ravenclaw, too, but this is just fine."  
  
"Your family in Ravenclaw?"  
  
"My mother and sister. Dad's been in Gryffindor."  
  
"You have a sister here?"  
  
"Left Hogwarts. I'm a late arrival in the family."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"And you? Happy to be here or would you have preferred another house?"  
  
"'m not sure yet. They don't really like me. You've got a much better welcome."  
  
"I was wondering why..."  
  
"Well, I'm sure it's because I'm a Black."  
  
"And?" Remus asked, puzzled.  
  
"They're all Slytherins. You saw my cousin before..."  
  
"Bellatrix? That's your cousin?"  
  
"Unfortunately. She's a real pest."  
  
"So you would have liked to be in Slytherin?"  
  
"No! I'm glad I'm not one of them. My 'home' is enough of a dungeon, I don't need that at school on top of that. I hear, Gryffindor is somewhere up in the castle."  
  
Remus nodded.  
  
"Yes, it's in a tower."  
  
"Sounds great."  
  
"They'll get used to you. I mean, as long as you don't go and hex them all the time they'll learn to know you, won't they?"  
  
"I hope so. I was glad enough to escape from home."  
  
The two boys warmed up to each other soon and their friendship developed to a really close relationship over the next few years. Remus only regretted that he wasn't able to invite Sirius to his home over the summer breaks, because Sirius' parents made sure he was safely inside of their house, almost locked up. For five years the boys were close friends. Just before the end of their fifth year Sirius inherited half of the fortune of his great uncle Alphard's and was able to cut his family off from putting their hands on his inheritance with the help of his great uncle's lawyers. But this led to a huge row between Sirius and his parents. Sirius broke all ties with his family and left his home with his possessions. He went straight to James Potter, his best friend since the boys had gone to primary school together.   
  
The Potters didn't even ask questions; when Sirius turned up on their doorstep they took him in, pampered him until he stopped shaking and only then they gently started to find out what had happened at Grimmauld Place. Sirius told them:  
  
"They were outraged because my great uncle left a lot of money to me and my cousin Andromeda. She's the other one in my generation who didn't behave like a 'true' Black - she married a Muggle-born, Ted Tonks. James might have told you. Well, they tried to get their hands on my inheritance and I sought help from uncle Alphard's lawyers. Anyway, they couldn't take it away from me and the will also stated that it was to come to my full use as soon as I got it. I left the Gringotts key at the lawyers to make sure my parents couldn't take it from me forcibly. And all of that made them slightly miffed at me..."  
  
James snorted. He could easily translate 'slightly miffed' to 'absolutely pissed off'.   
  
"You mean, they were in a murderous mood, don't you?" he asked.  
  
"Well, yes, at least close. Father thought it was enough if he hexed me around a bit. When I wouldn't back down he picked up some help. And then they started screaming at me that I would never become a proper follower of the Dark Lord if I kept up that mutinous behaviour of mine and bla and bla... you can imagine the drivel. And of course I screamed back that I wouldn't ever become a follower of their stupid Dark Lord anyway and the row turned out a bit nasty. So I packed and left. I'll have to find a flat now..."  
  
"You stay here as long as you're at Hogwarts, Sirius. There is no way you're going to get a flat of your own before you're of age next year," Mr. Potter said.  
  
Sirius smiled. For the first time in his life he was out of Grimmauld Place and he had been mighty glad for the Knight Bus to have taken him right to the doorstep of the Potters. James tugged on his sleeve and said:  
  
"Well, now that that's settled, let me take you up and give you a room. You can have the one next to mine!"  
  
While the boys picked up Sirius' trunk and owl cage and rushed upstairs, discussing Quidditch, Martha and Oliver Potter looked after them and wondered, if they would receive the visit of Sirius' angry relatives soon.  
  
Nothing happened though. A fact that astonished James' parents. Oliver Potter decided to talk to Sirius' father, but he was told rudely that the Blacks had washed their hands of such a disgrace of a son. Oliver Potter took this as a clear indication that Sirius was free from his family. He would turn seventeen in October, so Oliver Potter thought it could be overlooked that he had no guardian until then. He did inform Minerva McGonagall that Sirius was now living at his place though.   
  
James thought it was brilliant, that Sirius was with him. For the first time in their friendship the boys spent time outside of school with each other and of course James immediately thought of inviting Remus and Peter for a few weeks. His parents allowed it. Only minutes later, two owls fluttered into the night with a letter to Remus and another to Peter.   
  
Remus came down to breakfast the next morning and found the letter. Rupert and Rowland were already up and ate their breakfast. Remus, being a bit older, liked to sleep in during his vacations.  
  
"Good morning, cub. Did you sleep well?" Venetia asked.  
  
"Morning, mum. Yes, I did, thank you."  
  
"There's a letter for you. Sirius' owl brought it."  
  
Remus smiled. Venetia loved to see that bright smile on her son's face every time a letter from one of his friends arrived. Though the smile was always the brightest when it was a letter from Sirius. Remus picked it up and read it.  
  
"Sirius has left his home, mum! He's at James' and the Potters have taken him in! They're inviting me for a few weeks. Can I go?"  
  
"After the full moon, love."  
  
"That's on the ninth."  
  
"I know. You'll have to rest for the day though, but I'll allow you to go in the late afternoon."  
  
Remus hugged his mother and thanked her.  
  
"Thanks, mum! - Come upstairs with me, Silas, I'll give you a letter to take back to Siri!"   
  
"Breakfast first, young man, I want to clear the table!"  
  
"Can I take it up with me?"  
  
"Only if you promise to bring the dishes back down."  
  
"Sure!"  
  
Remus picked up a few pieces of buttered toast and a couple of rashes of bacon, his cup of hot chocolate and dashed up the stairs.   
  
"Can I go, too, mum?" asked Rupert.  
  
"Yes, love, if you've quite finished."  
  
"Yeah... I'd like to go and play."  
  
"Fine, go outside, but stay in the garden, please. And take Rowland with you!"  
  
"Okay. Come, Rowland. We can play broom tag, maybe even Remus helps playing later..."  
  
The boys vanished to the garden and Remus saw them moments later on their brooms. He wrote his letter to Sirius and added an extra letter to the Potters, that he would be allowed to come to their place on the tenth of August to the end of the vacation. He added both letters to Silas' legs and the owl took off, back across the country to the Potters.   
  
Time flew and soon the dreaded full moon night came up again. It was summer, so Rowland and Rupert were already sent to bed before Remus had to go down to the cellar. Richard and Venetia hugged him as they always did when he was at home for a transformation, then Remus went inside, only dressed in a bathrobe, which he took off and deposited on a shelf high on the wall. He sighed when he sat down. For more than ten years he had transformed into the wolf now. One hundred and thirty full moons ago he had received the bite. He wondered how many more he would survive. He didn't remember the nights once they were over, but he knew that it got harder to transform as the wolf was growing up inside of him. Remus had had his growth spurts in the meantime, he wasn't the smallest in the family anymore. The pain was only worse.  
  
Venetia found a very bloodied boy on the mattress in the cellar the next morning. It had been hard, but she had learned to stay away from the cellar during Remus' transformations, because he was only more agitated when he smelled someone outside of the door. He missed his friends. For four full moons he had been with them since they had transformed for the first time just after Christmas of the last school year. And even though his memories of the nights were hazy he knew that the wolf had been a lot calmer. He smiled, thinking of his big black dog, whom he regarded as his own puppy. Sirius was so cute, even though he looked like a ferocious beast, a churchyard grim. But he couldn't hide being an overgrown playful puppy in reality. Remus couldn't stop himself the first time he'd seen Sirius, who had flopped down and rolled to show his belly to be scratched, he had to comply.   
  
But now he was back in the cellar at home and the transformations had been as bad as any before. Venetia healed the wounds, then she levitated her son up to his bathroom and right into the hot water, where he stretched out and sighed. He was glad he didn't have to walk up the stairs. Venetia helped him wash up and rinsed his hair. Then she helped him to bed, where he fell asleep and didn't wake up for six hours. Rupert brought him soup and bread up and shared some pumpkin juice with his big brother.   
  
"Hey! Up to something to eat, Rem?" he asked.  
  
"Mhm. Thanks, Roop!"  
  
Rupert had just received his Hogwarts letter a few days before.   
  
"Mum said, we'd go shopping tomorrow. I can't wait, Remus! What house do you think I'll be in?"  
  
"Hm, no idea, Roop! Where would you like to go?"  
  
"You and Roxanne and Julia were all in Gryffindor. I think it'd be way cool if I got in there, too."  
  
"Well, you'll see. You might, you know! The hat is pretty cool."  
  
Remus spooned his soup and ate some of the homemade bread. His mother liked to cook and bake, so the family was always spoiled with lots of good food. The pot-au-feu tasted very nice, too. Remus fished out a section of a marrow bone and beamed. He spread the marrow over the bread, sprinkled a little salt on top and bit into the crunchy bread.   
  
"Yum! There's not much over mum's pot-au-feu!" he said.  
  
"I like lots of other things much better."  
  
"You'll love the Hogwarts food! It's great, too."  
  
Remus finished his meal and Rupert took the tray back down to the kitchen. Remus turned around in the bed and slept for another three hours. Venetia checked on him just before dinner. He looked well enough, so she said:  
  
"If you get dressed and come down I'll inform Martha that you're coming before dinner..."  
  
"Yay! Thanks a lot, mum!"  
  
She grinned. He was out of the bed in an instant and jumped over to his dresser to get some fresh clothes. They had packed a suitcase with summer clothes and his Hogwarts trunk. Remus would be allowed to stay until the vacation ended and Martha would hand the suitcase with the summer clothes to Venetia when they met at Platform 9 3/4. She went back down and floo called the Potters. Martha was there.  
  
"Hello, Martha. Remus has slept out now and he's ready to floo over. I'll take his suitcase and apparate, okay? He'll be down in a moment..."  
  
"Hello, Venetia! That's fine. James and Sirius are waiting for him. Unfortunately Peter had to leave again last Saturday, his family had a vacation abroad planned, so he couldn't stay until Remus comes."  
  
"Oh well, that's certainly better for you! I'm sure it's a handful to have the boys there..."  
  
"It's fun, too. Sirius is a nice boy. I got to learn to know him quite well."  
  
"He must be. Remus is quite taken with him. He is always happy when there's a letter for him, but he seems happiest when there's a letter from Sirius."  
  
"How cute. How is he today?"  
  
"Slept most of the day, but he emptied quite a big bowl of soup at lunch, which is usually a good sign. No wounds or bruises left, I've healed it all."  
  
"Good. So there are no restrictions for him?"  
  
"Not really. He'll sleep a bit more in the next three or four days, so no worries when he doesn't get up early."  
  
"Very well, we'll let him rest up. - hello, Remus! Ready to floo over?"  
  
"Hello, Mrs Potter! Yes, I am!" Remus called from behind his mother.  
  
"Good, I'll see you in a moment, Martha!" Venetia said, got up and helped Remus turn his trunk so he could take it easily through the floo.  
  
After he left, Venetia followed with his suitcase. Arriving in the Potters' living room she witnessed Sirius pulling Remus into a tight hug.   
  
"It's so good to have you here, mate! Let's help you take your stuff up. You can bunk with me!"  
  
Remus seemed to have already greeted all others in the house. Venetia gave James the suitcase and told him to follow his friends. Then she turned to meet Martha. They shook hands.  
  
"Thank you for inviting Remus for the remainder of the break. It means so much to him to have friends."  
  
"That's very much alright! We figured it's the first time ever that Sirius has his own friends for a visit, it would do him a lot of good, too. I'm sure we get along with Remus just fine," said Martha.  
  
"He's pretty easy to have. Don't hesitate to ask his help for chores."  
  
"We will, if there's need."  
  
"Fine! Well, I have to return home, Rupert and Rowland are alone at home. They're a bit dangerous to be left alone!"  
  
"We'll see you at King's Cross then!"  
  
Venetia left and the boys upstairs dropped Remus' stuff in Sirius' room, where there was a second bed next to Sirius' four poster. They had three weeks until the start of the term together. Sirius grinned at Remus and said:  
  
"Do you want to unpack your suitcase? There's space enough in the dresser, I can put my stuff in one drawer and you can have the other... there's also still quite a lot of space in the wardrobe..."  
  
"Are there shelves? Then you don't need to relocate your stuff in the dresser, I'll just put mine in the wardrobe..."  
  
"Jolly good idea. Here!"  
  
Remus quickly unpacked. Then he asked:  
  
"Have you been out shopping for the school supplies yet?"  
  
"Nope. Peter had already been right after he got the letter, that's why James and I decided to wait. We could do that in the next days..."  
  
Remus smiled.  
  
"Good!"  
  
"Your mum's very nice..." Sirius remarked.  
  
Remus had never said much about his family. He had noticed that family was a sore spot for Sirius and he didn't want to deepen his friend's wounds by telling him a ton of fluffy stories about his siblings and parents. So Sirius knew almost nothing about them. Remus grinned now and said:  
  
"I really love her to bits, Siri. She's always kind and she loves me, my dad, too. Without them I'd have never survived as a werewolf."  
  
"Lucky you! I'm glad that you have good parents."  
  
"Hey, Sirius, Remus! Are you coming? Time for dinner!" James called and banged the door open.  
  
"Yeah, we're coming."  
  
The three trampled down the stairs. Martha thought an earthquake had broken out, but it was only three famished teenage boys who stormed the dining room with a big grin on their faces. She sent them to the kitchen to wash their hands. Oliver had arrived at home and greeted the newcomer.  
  
"Hello, Remus! It's nice to see you again. Are you okay?"  
  
"Yes, sir, I am. Thank you for inviting me..."   
  
"You're very welcome! You boys will surely have a lot of fun together."  
  
"Can you say Quidditch?" James called.  
  
"Or broom tag?" Sirius followed suit.  
  
"Or Exploding Snap all day long?" James continued.  
  
Remus grinned. This was as close to a normal life outside of his own family he'd ever get, he thought. The dinner was a very pleasant affair. There was a lively conversation going on between the five. The Potters didn't treat the boys as children anymore, they regarded them as the young adults they were slowly becoming, so they discussed lots of things with them. After dinner the boys cleared the table and washed the dishes, then they took off outside for a while and when it got dark they returned and ran up to James' room, which had more space than Sirius', now that there was a second bed in there.  
  
"Peter already bunked there, so we just made a fresh bed..." Sirius told Remus. 


	3. 03 In Love with his best Friend?

Title: Baby Boom! 3/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course! This part gets a bit graphic when our two boys get together  
  
**3. In love with his best friend?**  
  
Behind the closed door Sirius transformed to the dog for fun. He slumped down in front of Remus, who sat on the carpet with his legs spread apart. Remus dug his hands deep into the shaggy pelt of the dog and caressed him. He felt his heart pound and when he noticed that he was actually caressing Sirius, he blushed and let go. Sirius turned around and gave Remus a little shove with his big paw. Remus gripped it and said:  
  
"You know, Sirius, you're a right Padfoot!"  
  
James laughed and said:  
  
"What a great nickname you've given Sirius, Moony!"  
  
"Matches mine in its idiotic way..." said Remus, who had yet to get accustomed to the nickname with which his friends had tagged him after they had found out about his werewolf.  
  
"Yours fits you perfectly, you're always mooning over something, Remus!" James insisted.  
  
Sirius barked.  
  
"So you would like to be called Padfoot?" Remus asked.  
  
The dog nodded and dropped down again. He looked at Remus with a penetrating stare, whined a bit and barked happily when Remus' hands returned to dig in the thick fur.   
  
"I don't think, anyone would be afraid of this Grim," he sniggered.   
  
"I don't think so either. Padfoot can't hide his lovable character," James confirmed. "But come on back, Siri, how about some Exploding Snap?"  
  
"Okay," Sirius said, transforming back swiftly. Remus pulled his hand away immediately, blushing again.  
  
He knew he couldn't hide his crush on Sirius for much longer. If the blushing didn't give him away, then it would be how he looked at his friend and his love for Padfoot, the dog. It was true that seeing Padfoot for the first time had given his crush the last push. Remus liked to think of it as a crush, but deep down he knew that he was in love with Sirius. It made him afraid, because he didn't expect Sirius to return his feelings. He wasn't sure about Sirius' sexual orientation. It was the heydays of glitter rock and Sirius had grown quite fond of the Muggle music scenes, he loved everything between hard rock and glitter. He had bought a whole new wardrobe which expressed those tastes. Flared jeans, so tight he could hardly sit down, glittery outfits, t-shirts which barely reached the upper rim of the trousers, high heeled boots. At the end of the last school year, Lily and her friends had introduced him to make-up, which he loved and now he was rarely seen without polished nails, kohl around his eyes and glittery colours on the lids. He wasn't too fond of lipstick, but he did apply some gloss sometimes. His hair had grown out to reach his shoulder blades and the black mass looked very tempting to Remus, who would have loved to rake through that even more than through Padfoot's thick fur.  
  
So Remus wasn't sure if this was just Sirius' fashion sense or if it was an expression of his sexuality. Of course, looking a bit effeminate made Sirius also look like a bit of a poof, but it wasn't really a hint, because so many boys around them acted the same way, even around their girlfriends. When Remus reminisced a bit about it, he remembered that Sirius didn't look particularly interested in girls. At school he would usually mostly ignore them, even though many of them were in awe about his good looks. He thought that many a girl would be ready to overlook his less pleasant character traits just to be the one to go with him.   
  
But it wasn't that he had seen Sirius with boys, either.   
  
"Why don't you get together with some of those girls who would love to date you at Hogwarts, Sirius?" he asked, out of the blue.  
  
The next moment he thought he must be crazy and wanted to vanish into the tiniest hole he'd fit in. Sirius looked up from his cards and gasped a little. He stared at Remus and replied with all the coolness he could muster:  
  
"Maybe I'm not interested in them..."  
  
James looked up as well. He usually grinned about Sirius' antics in dressing up and playing the ponce, but he had thought it to be just that, acting. Now he wondered.   
  
"What, are you gay?" he asked, not really expecting an answer.  
  
"Think so. Just usually can't stand the girls when they get too close. And too girly... all giggly and excitable..."  
  
Remus' heart pounded. If Sirius was gay... he smiled at his friend. Sirius noted the smile and he meant to feel a difference in this smile to Remus' usual smiles. While Remus was still fighting to accept his sexual orientation, Sirius had left that stage already behind even though he had never told his friends about it yet. Sirius carried a torch for his friend, had done so for about two years and for Sirius it had been a sign of fate that his Animagus form was a dog. One canine for another, yes? But how to tell your best friend you're in love with him? He didn't say so, but he loved the nickname Remus had just bestowed on him. For Sirius this nickname was like a very personal gift from his love interest. He loved Remus' hands in his fur and wished he could feel them on his skin instead of the fur. He hoped that one day Remus would notice that Padfoot came out often for Remus alone. He sometimes hated himself, because it felt like he was manipulating Remus. He knew Remus couldn't resist the dog and he would freely do to the dog what he probably wouldn't do to the human counterpart. He rubbed his fur, played with him and loved to tussle and mock-fight. Remus wouldn't mock-fight with the boy Sirius. He thought it was too childish. But he never hesitated to really play with the dog, no matter how silly the games became. Sirius knew it and took advantage of it. He loved to see Remus leaving his inhibitions behind when he wrestled and played with Padfoot.  
  
A while later James asked if someone was willing to play chess with him. Remus was, so they brought the board out and set the game up on the carpet in front of the fireplace. Sirius transformed again and put his head in Remus' lap. Remus absentmindedly caressed the big doggy head and Padfoot sighed. James observed his two friends. Padfoot lay on his side, all four legs stretched out, with his head on Remus' lap. It looked so sweet and cosy, so James got up quickly. Before Remus noticed what was going on, James had snapped a few photos.   
  
"You two are too cute for words!"  
  
Remus groaned.   
  
"I'm not cute!" he protested. "Not so sure about Padfoot here, though. Big as he is, he really looks cute with that shiny black nose and those pale eyes. And your tongue lolling out."  
  
The dog panted slightly, to hide his sniffing for Remus' scent. He looked up and turned his head, so that he could lick Remus' hand.   
  
"Hey! No licking here, Padfoot!"  
  
Remus wiped his hands on his jeans. He looked at Sirius with a reproachful glance, but Sirius didn't seem to care much. In fact, Sirius was as happy as could be. He was close to his love and if that was all he would get he happily took it.   
  
After a fairly intensive battle James won the game. It was too late to start another one, so Remus got up and said:  
  
"I'm really tired, even though I slept a lot today. I think, I'm going to bed."  
  
"Okay. You can have the bathroom first then..." James said and watched Remus leave the room, closing the door behind himself.  
  
"Turn back, Sirius!" James told his friend.  
  
Sirius reappeared. He shook his hair out and crossed his legs. James looked at him for a moment, then he said:  
  
"I think you have a thing for Moony."  
  
"You think? - I know..." Sirius said sadly.  
  
"So why don't you do anything about it?" James asked. He was rather amused.  
  
"Well, how do I tell him? I don't think he likes me back this way. He loves the dog, and I know he really likes me, but we're friends, aren't we? I don't think he swings that way either..."  
  
James just grinned. He didn't know if Sirius really hadn't seen it, but he had noticed the blushes. He pointed out:  
  
"I've seen Remus blush at least three times tonight. And only because of something you did or said. Maybe that was why he asked you about your disinterest in girls..."  
  
"Do you think so? It did come a bit out of the blue, didn't it?"  
  
"Absolutely. I was almost shocked that he asked. It's not usually like Remus to do something like that. It could well be a sign, couldn't it?"  
  
"Don't know..."   
  
Sirius was at a loss for words. He wasn't ready to believe that his dream could actually come true. James went on:  
  
"And hey, he gave you a nickname! I haven't heard something like that from Moony ever before. He usually doesn't use nicknames at all. And not just any nickname, he's given you the best nickname I could imagine. A real dog's name."  
  
Sirius smiled.  
  
"It's true that, isn't it? I don't think he'd give me an answer if I asked him though..."  
  
"Just give him more signs. Smile at him, things like that. Try to spend more time with him, like when he goes to the library at Hogwarts. I'm sure he'd love that."  
  
"James Potter, the great prat, giving love advice! That must be the best joke in the world," Sirius grinned, feeling very self-conscious.   
  
"Hey, I resent that!"  
  
"Well, so far you haven't found a way into the heart of Miss Lily Evans yet, have you?"  
  
"But I will. I'm going to change my tactics this year. If you're running after the wolf, I'll have time to behave a bit better. That will convince her of my sincerity over short or long. She'll fall for me yet, you'll see!" James said.  
  
"Ever the self-confident James Potter... wish you the best of luck. If she'd loosen up a bit she'd be perfect for you."  
  
Remus poked his head around the door.  
  
"Bath is free!" he called.  
  
"Thanks, Remus! - I'll go and brush my teeth quickly then," Sirius said and got up.  
  
"I'm coming with you if you don't mind."  
  
"Nah, I don't mind, that's okay."  
  
A few minutes later Sirius turned the knob of his door and went inside. Remus had already undressed and wore only his shorts and a thin t-shirt. Sirius threw a quick glance at the tiny, but lovely round arse of his friend. He sighed a bit, then closed the door again and shed his clothes. Remus slipped into the bed and pulled up the comforter.  
  
"Good night, Siri," he said.  
  
"Night, Rem..." Sirius replied and climbed into his own bed.   
  
There was a small fire burning in the fireplace, otherwise there was no light. Sirius turned around, so he could see the shock of brown hair on Remus' head. Remus had turned his back to the bigger bed and pulled the comforter up to his chin. Sirius smiled. It was the way Remus always slept.  
  
After a few hours Sirius woke up, hearing strange sounds in the room. He realised it was Remus, thrashing around in the middle of a nightmare. He moaned and there were tears spilling from his tightly closed eyes. Sirius was up in an instant. He sat on the edge of Remus' bed and grabbed his shoulders.   
  
"Remus! Rem! Come on, wake up, Moony! It's just a dream!"  
  
Remus woke up and stared at Sirius. He slumped back on the bed and mumbled:  
  
"Sorry for waking you..."  
  
"No problem, Rem. Post transformation shite?"  
  
"Yeah. The usual drivel, too. I just can't seem to wake myself up from those dreams. I really hate them..."  
  
"It's okay, Moony, don't worry about waking me up. I'm glad if I can pull you out. Want to come over and cuddle?"  
  
He nodded to the big bed. Remus shoved the comforter down and sat up. He followed Sirius and the two settled in the big bed, Remus in Sirius' arms. They were asleep within minutes and there were no more bad dreams.   
  
Remus had a few bad dreams in the next nights. It was nothing new for Sirius and James, they were actually quite used to it, as Remus had lots of nightmares at Hogwarts, too, mostly only for a couple of nights after the full moon. So Sirius and Remus got lots of cuddling time, which both very secretly enjoyed on a whole different level, but both were insecure enough not to be fully honest about their motivation to enjoy the other's closeness.  
  
In their interaction with the elder Potters neither showed anything other than exuberant teenage boys. James never got a moment to talk with Remus alone, but he was determined to give him a hint about Padfoot's feelings. It took two out of the three weeks until James got his opportunity. They had decided to go to Diagon Alley on the Friday before the last week of the break. The Alley was full of shoppers, lots of school mates who were out doing the same, but they enjoyed it. At some point Sirius left them to see his lawyers to retrieve his Gringotts key and get some money. James and Remus went ahead and bought the books they'd need for the coming school year. They had all done very well on their OWLS. All three had chosen the same NEWTS level subjects, they would be taking Transfiguration, Charms, Defence, Potions, Herbology and Ancient Runes. They didn't know yet what Peter intended to take, but they were quite sure he would drop Potions. Remus would have liked to drop that subject, too, but he knew that if he would want to become an Auror he had to take it. He had done well enough in his OWL to be eligible, which had astonished him. He never expected to have a mark as good as the E he got.   
  
"Remus..." James started, while they went to Florean Fortescue's, where they were to meet up with Sirius again.  
  
"Hmm?" Remus asked, already with his nose deep inside of the new Defence text book.  
  
James smiled. Remus would always put his books first, his friends second and most else long after that.  
  
"Say, when Sirius told us he's gay..."  
  
Remus' ears perked up. He turned to James, who grinned.  
  
"Thought, that'd fetch you from your book..."  
  
"What?"  
  
"I think he's got a thing for you. Would that shock you too much to even think about it?"  
  
Remus' eyes became slits.  
  
"You 'think' or you 'know'?"  
  
"Well, more like 'know'..." James admitted.  
  
"Did he ask you to talk to me?"  
  
"No! He'd probably kill me if he knew... but if you return his feelings, then I think it would be awful to watch the two of you trying to give each other hints and at the same time trying your best not to see them. Don't you think?"   
  
"Does he give me hints?" Remus asked, honestly astonished.  
  
James rolled his eyes.  
  
"Don't you see them? Could he be any more blatant short of saying it? Every time he's turning into Padfoot... he wants you to pet and tickle him, not anyone of us. 'Cause he loves you."  
  
"Oh." Remus said.  
  
"So - do you want the hints?"  
  
Remus couldn't stop his smile. If it was true... then yes, he wanted those hints very much. But then he said:  
  
"Yes, I think, I do. But what if he means something entirely different?"  
  
"He doesn't."  
  
"How can you be so sure?"  
  
"Asked him. He didn't deny it, on the contrary."  
  
"Oh." Remus said again.  
  
They had just reached Florean Fortescue's, when they spotted Sirius coming from the other side. He grinned and waved and waited for them. Together they looked for a table and went to order their ice creams. Then they sat in the sun. Remus passed a big bag over to Sirius and said:  
  
"Here, your books, Siri."  
  
"Thanks. How much?"  
  
"Two Galleons, fourteen Sickles and three Knuts," Remus replied.  
  
Sirius slurped some of the melting ice cream and reached for his purse, to pay Remus back. He didn't have enough Sickles, so he said:  
  
"Here, take three Galleons. You can get me a couple of sugar quills at Hogsmeade next time..."  
  
"Okay."  
  
Remus took the coins and placed them in his own purse. He had already received his allowance for the term, which was quite comfortable. His parents had added the estimated amount he would need for the supplies. The three of them enjoyed their ice creams and talked to some of their school mates passing by. Sirius enjoyed it especially. He had never known freedom like this before, now he was almost overwhelmed. His mother had usually just pulled him through the shops and then taken him home again immediately. In the last summer she had even left him at home and bought his supplies alone. He thought of her and shivered. He would forever remember the harpy who screamed and raged, who mistreated him at the slightest misbehaviour. He could never be sure that he did behave either, because she would redefine misbehaviour every day. He would be in fear of his mother as long as she would be alive.   
  
Remus noticed his faraway look. He nudged Sirius lightly and Sirius shook his head, looking at his friend questioningly.  
  
"Come on, Siri! We're going. I need some stuff still..."  
  
"Okay."  
  
Sirius grabbed his bag and checked that his purse was in its proper place, then he walked out next to Remus.   
  
"Where have you been just now, Siri? You looked so lost..."  
  
Sirius sighed.  
  
"Just thought about how my mother would never let me out alone. It's still incredible to be away from that place, Moony! I've never had this freedom."  
  
Remus smiled. He looked up to Sirius, who was about half a head taller now that Remus had caught up a bit. He gave Sirius a hug.  
  
"You've really deserved to find that freedom, Padfoot. In less than three months you're of age anyway and don't need to bother with them anymore."  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
They were bustled around in the mass of people who were out on this sunny August day. Someone gave Sirius a little push to move, but shoved him into Remus, who was startled. Sirius had to throw his arms around his friend to keep his balance. For a few seconds they stared into each others' eyes. Remus turned to Sirius in the embrace, looked up and their mouths were very close, their lips almost brushed against each other, when they heard James:  
  
"Come on, where are you guys?"  
  
An instant before James came around another group of people and saw them, they let each other go. Remus' heart was beating very fast. They had been so close! Did that mean that James was right?   
  
He decided to test the grounds. When they went to bed that night, he waited for Sirius to come to the room and when Sirius was climbing into his bed, Remus walked to his with a little sway to his hips that made Sirius gasp. Remus threw a quick surreptitious glance behind himself and what he saw made him sing and dance inside. Sirius stood frozen next to his bed, staring at Remus, who stuck his arse out a bit more when he bent down to hold up the comforter and slip into the bed. Sirius let out a tiny grunt, turned around and came over to Remus. He pulled the smaller boy around, pulled him into his arms and asked in a whisper:  
  
"Remus! What was that this afternoon? Were you about to kiss me?"  
  
"I think so. Were you about to kiss me? Would you have if James hadn't interrupted?"  
  
Sirius nodded. He bent down slowly and pressed his lips onto Remus'. For a moment they just explored the feelings of each other's lips touching very lightly, but Remus wrapped his arms around Sirius' waist and got closer. All he could think was: 'James was right, James was right...'  
  
With a soft gasp he opened his lips a tiny bit and touched Sirius' with his tongue. Almost immediately he felt how Sirius let him inside, he met another tongue, warm, wet and that first touch sent a jolt of pleasure through his whole body. Sirius moaned. He pulled a bit and both of them moved over to his bed, but this time they slipped inside there fully aware of the other's feelings. Their lips locked again. Sirius wasn't the only one who moaned now. Remus responded in kind and he pressed himself against Sirius' body.  
  
Both realised they were aroused at the same time. Both blushed, but the kissing was so good, so they just returned to more of it.   
  
"Mm," Remus made.   
  
Sirius smiled into the kiss. He had never kissed like this before. A few stolen kisses from girls, which meant nothing and had done even less for him, one kiss with a boy behind the broom shed at Hogwarts after a Quidditch practice, which had only left him more confused, because it didn't seem to work better than with the girls was the sum of his experiences. But now, this, it was like a bomb exploding inside of him. He felt a whole avalanche of feelings rush through him and he found that his cock was hard without even touching it. Then he realised he was pushing against Remus and Remus was just as hard. He could feel it easily through the thin fabric of two pairs of boxers. He drew another deep breath.  
  
"Remus..." he sighed.  
  
"Siri," came the quiet, almost shy reply.  
  
"Remus, you're not just playing with me, are you?"  
  
Remus shook his head.   
  
"No!" he almost shouted.  
  
"I've been in love with you for so long... so long," Sirius mumbled and kissed Remus again.   
  
Each kiss sparked more fire. Each kiss burned longer and was felt deeper and more intimately. Remus clung to Sirius and was kissing with as much vigour as he felt it from Sirius.  
  
"I love you, too, Siri," he said in a low voice, when they took time to catch some breath.  
  
Sirius closed his eyes and said a quick thank you to whatever deity was out there listening to his mind. He started to caress Remus over the shoulders, his arms, his back, then he stuck his hands under Remus' shirt and heard the gasp Remus let out.  
  
"Nnnng..." Remus made, then: "Just don't stop, this feels so good..."  
  
And to show Sirius what he meant, he mirrored the action, pushing his hand underneath the t-shirt and groping for Sirius' nipples, which he pinched, then caressed with the palm of his hand. Sirius reacted promptly with another thrust of his hip toward Remus.  
  
"Yes!" Sirius hissed.  
  
The t-shirts were removed quickly. In the flickering light of the dying fire they looked at each other, discovering each other with their sense of touch more than their eyes. Remus burrowed his head in Sirius' chest and took deep breaths, inhaling Sirius' scent until he had it memorised forever. He smelled a bit differently than usually. Remus noticed that this was Sirius' scent when he was aroused.   
  
Sirius turned on his back and pulled Remus along. Remus straddled him and placed himself so that their cocks were lying side by side. There was still the fabric of their boxers, but both could feel through the thin material. Remus pressed down a bit. Sirius moaned.   
  
"Aw! Aw, Remus! Remus, yes!"  
  
He pulled Remus close, held him tightly and thrust upwards, Remus pressed down and it didn't take more than a few minutes until both of them reached their orgasms. It was earth shattering for Remus. He had masturbated like everyone else, but rarely and only under extremely tight silencing charms. He had heard all of his dorm mates more than once. He had reached a number of quite nice orgasms, but nothing so far had even been remotely as good as this first shared climax. Even though no hands had been involved, no penetration had taken place, just the rubbing of their erections against each other through the fabric of their shorts had been enough.   
  
"Gods, that was good..." Sirius sighed.   
  
Remus squirmed. The sticky moistness in his shorts started to be disturbing. He shimmied out of his and wiped the remaining seed off his abdomen. Then he helped Sirius out of his. They looked at each other and both blushed again. It was the most intimate moment both had ever lived through.  
  
"So, what are we now?" Remus asked.  
  
"Lovers?" Sirius asked back. There was hope in his voice.   
  
Remus smiled. He kissed Sirius again and feeling Remus' naked body along his own skin made Sirius gasp again. Slowly, Sirius let his hands run along Remus' side until he reached the hipbone, which he followed. He could feel the skin underneath his hand flutter. Remus hissed. Sirius reached the patch of brown curls above Remus' cock, dug his fingers inside and curled the still moist hair around them. It was enough to get Remus' cock up again. He could just feel it harden the moment he touched it. Remus buried his face in Sirius' shoulder.   
  
"Mm."  
  
Sirius grinned. He moved his hand very slowly, to get a first feel of that other cock. It gave him a jolt, too, to feel this hardening organ in his hand. It was still damp from the orgasm before, and probably still a bit tender to his touch.  
  
"'S that okay?" he asked.   
  
Remus just nodded into his shoulder. Sirius pulled his hand away and stroked Remus over the head. He dug Remus' face out and planted another kiss on his mouth.  
  
"Love you..." he whispered.  
  
Both were sated and thoroughly exhausted when they finally went to sleep. They overslept in the morning and were woken by James, who opened the door with a bang, only to freeze on the spot. He noticed fast enough that both occupants of Sirius' bed were stark naked and put his hands over his eyes. James grinned, but he cried out theatrically:  
  
"Oh, woe to me, that I have to start my day seeing this!"  
  
Both heads in the bed turned around. They both blushed and pulled up the comforter in one swift move.  
  
"James! Get out!" Sirius shrieked.  
  
James laughed out loud and retreated. He closed the door and ran down the stairs. When he came into the kitchen, he was so obviously in an excellent mood that his mother noticed.  
  
"What's put you into such a good mood, James?" Martha asked.  
  
"Oh, just something. - Mum, what do you think about two guys in love with each other? Or two girls for that matter?"  
  
Martha looked at him sharply. Did her son prepare the terrain to tell her that he was gay? But what would have put him in such a beaming mood, then? Did he hook up with either of his friends?  
  
"I know a gay couple, James. If they're discreet and don't hit on other men - or women - all the time then I don't mind them. Why do you ask?"  
  
With a bit of trepidation she waited for him to come out, but he just said:  
  
"Then be prepared. Siri and Remus are in love with each other. I think they hooked up last night..."   
  
"Oh dear! Well, as long as they're happy..." Martha tried not to show that she was relieved.  
  
James grinned.  
  
"Thought it was me, eh? They might have a while to work things out and get together, but I think they're on the way to being very happy. I wish I could get there with Lily..."  
  
"Still mooning over the lovely Miss Evans?" Martha teased.  
  
"I'm not mooning! I love her, mum! If only she'd see it..."  
  
"Why don't you try some flowers now and then? Ask her to study together, the way you describe her she seems to be pretty serious with schoolwork. Which couldn't harm you either, by the way."  
  
"Hey! I did well on my OWLS," he protested.  
  
"Granted. But with your good head they could be even better."  
  
"Ow!" he made.  
  
Martha laughed. She was quite happy with her son, but of course she knew that he tended to be a bit on the arrogant side, often encouraged by Sirius of course. But if Sirius and Remus were becoming a couple, who knows, maybe James would concentrate on his schoolwork a bit more.  
  
She was still pondering this when Remus and Sirius arrived in the kitchen. Their behaviour showed not the slightest difference of the day before, but now that Martha knew she started to observe the boys and soon found that they were exchanging glances, winks, there were tiny touches and when she saw them in the large garden a few hours later they were kissing. She frowned a bit, but then turned her eyes away. They would come out of their closet when they were ready. In the meantime James would probably tell them that his mother didn't freak out at the thought of gay people.  
  
Oliver wasn't as pleased when she told him. They were getting ready for bed and he frowned at the information.  
  
"I don't like it very much, Martha."  
  
"Why? You're not prejudiced against homosexuality, are you?"  
  
"No, it's not that, I don't think. But while they're under our roof we're responsible for them."  
  
"Yes, and? Do you think they will hurt each other?"  
  
He blushed.  
  
"No, why should they? But, you know... I'm not exactly comfortable with them carrying on here at my house."  
  
"Oh, you're worried about them having sex? They didn't seem to be there yet. But I did see them kissing in the corner of the garden this afternoon. Remus looks very happy..."  
  
"Well, who knows how hard it will be for him to find a partner. He has to tell them that he's a werewolf and I would bet that most of his possible partners would be up and gone after that information. Sirius already knows and is comfortable with it," Oliver admitted.  
  
"Yes, I think that has an important part in Remus' affection for Sirius. Now we know why the two of them seemed to get along the best. Sirius and James is always like a barrel of explosives with a burning wick on it. You never know when they explode. Remus has a very good influence on Sirius. He's a pretty down to earth boy."  
  
"I've had that impression, too, these past weeks. Oh well, there's not much we can do..."  
  
"Or even should. In a few days they'll be off to Hogwarts and then they're beyond our control anyway."  
  
"Should we tell Richard and Venetia?"  
  
"No. Officially we know nothing of their relationship. It wouldn't be right to out them to the Lupins before they can do it themselves. I'm quite sure they will do so when they're ready. At least their relationship won't produce untimely or unwanted children."  
  
Oliver nodded. They climbed into the bed and Martha extinguished the lights with her wand. She snuggled closer and felt the arms of her husband pulling her to his body.  
  
Remus and Sirius went to bed and this time they didn't even bother leaving any clothes on. They jumped into the bed together and kissed each other for half an hour.


	4. 04 Back to Hogwarts

Title: Baby Boom! 4/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing Dari Sanchez and Hope Foster turn up some in this story - they're Maple Tide's!  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**4. Back to Hogwarts**  
  
Their return to Hogwarts a couple of days later meant the end of a week in heaven. On Platform 9 3/4 they met up with Richard and Venetia Lupin to give them Remus' suitcase. They still had a few minutes left. Remus looked up to his parents and said:  
  
"Mum, dad, I've got something to tell you..."  
  
"Yes, Remus? What is it?" Venetia asked back. His tone told her immediately that it was something important.  
  
"I'm in love..." Remus said and worried his lower lip.  
  
"Wow! Now there's a surprise, cub. Do we know her?" Richard asked, grinning.  
  
"Him. And yes, you do know him," Remus replied.  
  
Now Venetia knew. There was a reason for Remus' happy face when he received one of Sirius' letters after all, she thought. She didn't mind that at all. Thinking practically she knew how difficult things could get for Remus when it came to looking for a mate and from that point of view she found him being together with Sirius ideal. But were they together?  
  
"So, are you and Sirius together, love?" she asked softly, giving her knowledge away.  
  
Remus looked up at her, astonished.  
  
"How d'you know it's Sirius?" he asked.  
  
"Lucky guess!" she said, laughing. "Is it?"  
  
"Yes. I really hope you don't mind that I won't give you any grandchildren..." Remus replied with a blush.  
  
"As if there weren't enough candidates for that, Remus! Remember! You have three brothers and three sisters. Sources enough for grandchildren, sweetie."   
  
Venetia hugged her son. His affliction had always made him closest to her of all of her children, even if she loved them all.   
  
"I'm really glad for you to have found love, Remus. That's more important than a grandchild, you know! You should be happy and that will give you as much of a normal life as possible. And that makes me happy for you. Would you like to bring Sirius home for Christmas?"  
  
Remus smiled so widely she thought his mouth was going to reach his ears. He threw his arms around her and almost sobbed.  
  
"Oh mum, I'm so glad you're okay with it. I'll write you all about it when I'm back at Hogwarts, okay? Sirius will be so glad that you're okay with it."  
  
"Where is he at all?" Venetia looked around until she saw Sirius talking with James a few metres away.   
  
He caught her glance and looked back anxiously. She beckoned him over. He came and looked worried, but Venetia pulled him into a hug and said:  
  
"Let me first congratulate you on getting away from that awful place, Sirius! I'm sure you're much happier now. And then let me ease your mind about being together with Remus. I'm glad it's you if it had to be another boy. You may know that for Richard and I only counts what makes Remus happy, and frankly, he is glowing right now. If that's because you two are a couple now I'm fine with it. Welcome to the family, Sirius!"  
  
Sirius couldn't hold back his tears. He returned her hug and sobbed. She patted his shoulders and said:  
  
"Come now, sweetie, there's no need to cry, now is there? You love each other, that's fine with me. And even though Richard still looks like a fish on dry land I'm sure he thinks the same..." Venetia teased her husband more than her future son-in-law.  
  
Richard laughed. He pulled Remus into another hug and said:  
  
"Don't worry, Remus, I'm fine with it, too. You two have been best friends for so many years already, I think that should be a good basis for a solid relationship. I really wish you all the best. You'll enjoy Hogwarts especially this year, there'll be a surprise for you people!"  
  
"Oh! What is it, dad? Come on, if you know it would be so unfair not to tell us!"  
  
"No, won't do anything like that. What surprise would it be if you already knew?"  
  
"Aww! That's mean. To tease us with something you know and then not tell!" Remus said in protest with a slightly whiny tone.  
  
Sirius had caught himself. He looked at the Lupin family and noticed that there were two other boys next to Remus' parents. And in that moment he noticed that he still barely knew anything about Remus' family.   
  
"Oh, Sirius, this here is Rupert, and this is Rowland. They're my little brothers. Rupert starts Hogwarts this year."  
  
"Oh..." was all Sirius could say at first. Then he held out his hand to shake Rupert's and Rowland's.  
  
"Hi. I'm Sirius. You've probably heard about me..."  
  
"Yeah, a bit..." Rupert said and grinned.   
  
"Once a day or so..." Rowland filled in.  
  
"Or once an hour every day..." Rupert went on.  
  
And both boys dissolved into peals of laughter. Remus just gave them a little shove. While they fought with each other a lot the two of them were quite a mischievous pair. He looked forward to the Sorting to find out which house would become his brother's new home away from home.  
  
"It'll be so dull at home with you all away," Rowland complained.  
  
"You'll be off to Hogwarts very soon, too, love," his mother said.   
  
Then she checked the time and said:  
  
"Well, you people should hop on the train, it'll leave soon! Will you keep an eye on Rupert today, Remus?"  
  
"Of course, mum. Though I'll have to go to the prefect's carriage for the start."  
  
"That's okay, we'll take him with us, won't we, Sirius?" James offered.  
  
"Of course! Can't but keep a watch over a Marauder's little brother... unless it's mine of course! Come, Rupert, you'll have a lot of fun on this ride!"  
  
Soon they were settled into a compartment. Remus kissed Sirius and left for the prefect's carriage from where he returned an hour later with the latest information about what would be going on at Hogwarts in the weeks to come. He found his little brother happily playing Exploding Snap with James, Peter and Sirius. There was another boy in the compartment who looked like he was a first year. Remus recognised one of Rupert's school mates from the primary school.  
  
The moment he opened the door to the compartment it looked like the sun had risen in Sirius' face. He beamed at his boyfriend. And said boyfriend beamed right back. Peter noticed and asked:  
  
"Hey, did something happen while I was away from you guys?"  
  
"You could say so, Peter. Be prepared for a LOT of sappiness going on in our dorm. Those two are like dripping honey! In other words, meet Hogwarts' newest dream couple..." James said with as much sarcasm as he could muster, but he couldn't hide a grin which belied his words somehow.  
  
Since James was alright with it, Peter was. He said:  
  
"Oy! Did it occur to either of you guys that you are in fact, err... two... guys? Together?"  
  
Sirius grinned. He beamed at Remus, whom he had missed already, even if he had been away for only an hour.  
  
"Yeah, it did, go figure!" he said.  
  
"That's kind of the idea of being gay, Peter," Remus added.   
  
"Oh..." was all Peter said.  
  
And after a while:  
  
"Well, it's good you're together, glad you won't be hitting on me then..."  
  
James grinned and confirmed:  
  
"Yes, I'm kind of glad about that, too! And I suppose my mum was as well."   
  
And they all laughed. The rest of the ride passed in comfortable bantering, playing and of course Remus spent about half of it immersed in one of his books.   
  
"How did you do on your OWLS, Peter?"  
  
"Not as bad as I thought. Got one in Charms, Herbology, Divination and Care of Magical Creatures. So I'm now taking those, Defence and Transfiguration."  
  
"Oh, great! That means we still share four of our subjects."  
  
"That's great! How did yours go?"  
  
"I'm quite happy about them! I got an O in Defence and Charms, E in Transfiguration, Potions, Herbology, Astronomy and Ancient Runes. And I've got an A in Arithmancy, too, but I'm dropping it. Don't need a teacher to study that anymore," Remus replied.  
  
"Wow! That's quite impressive! How on earth did you manage an E in Potions? That will keep you in McGuire's NEWTS level class, won't it?"  
  
"It will. And I have no idea, but the main factor could be that the examiners are a bit less biased and that they don't know I'm a werewolf..."  
  
At that moment they remembered that they weren't as alone in the compartment as they usually were. Rupert of course knew everything about Remus' lycanthropy, but Danny, his friend, had no idea. He looked up at Remus, shocked, and was just starting to scream when Rupert put his hand on his mouth.  
  
"Shit..." Remus said quietly.   
  
He was so used to handling his lycanthropy casually when he was with his family or with the Marauders he had completely forgotten that there was someone else in the compartment.  
  
"Dan, just calm down, please!" Rupert said and added: "I'll take my hand away if you nod and tell me that you won't scream, okay?"  
  
Daniel nodded. Rupert took his hand away and explained:  
  
"Sorry, Dan! I couldn't tell you, it isn't my secret to share, but now that Remus has been the idiot himself... I hope you will mind as little as we do, once you'll know that he's really okay. I mean, just how many years have you known him?"  
  
"Quite a few..." Dan managed.  
  
Remus looked at him anxiously.   
  
"How can they let you into the school? And even make you a prefect?" he hissed then.  
  
"Because I'm safe..." Remus said.  
  
"No werewolf is safe!" Dan protested.  
  
Sirius sighed. Then he looked Dan in the eyes and said:  
  
"Werewolves are people like you and I except for that one night a month when they have to transform, Daniel. That means there is not the slightest reason for you to be afraid of Remus. Because on that particular night he leaves the castle for his transformation. That means he will be far away from you and you don't have to fear a thing. Believe me that there is nothing dangerous about Remus when he's a human. Apart from his sharp wit that is. He's been made a prefect because he's the most talented among us four and because he's the most reliable one. Can you see past the prejudices that everyone has loaded on you and accept that he has a right to get a good education just like every other wizard or witch?"  
  
"I don't know..." Daniel said, sounding very insecure.  
  
"Tell you what. When we get to Hogwarts you'll be sorted and then we'll have a little chat with Professor Dumbledore about it, okay?" James said.  
  
"Okay."  
  
"And may we ask you that you do not repeat any of this to anyone until then? Because it's kept quiet that Remus is a werewolf to not cause more of the reactions you just showed. If people don't know they won't worry about it. Remus carries a heavy burden, but he's holding up under it and he's never yet endangered anyone," Sirius added.  
  
"Okay."  
  
Luckily the trip ended shortly after that and they all left to catch one of the carriages to school. Remus gave Rupert a little shove in Hagrid's direction.  
  
"There's Hagrid, Roop. You two go with him."  
  
"I'll have an eye on Dan until the Sorting is over, Remus, okay?"  
  
"Thanks, Roop! I'm such an idiot."  
  
"He'll keep his mouth shut."  
  
Remus followed the other three Marauders to a carriage and snuggled close to Sirius during the ride. He was really scared that little Daniel would spill the beans before they could have him in Dumbledore's office, where he would probably be obliviated.  
  
The moment they reached the Great Hall, Remus and Sirius went to talk to the headmaster who was already at his place at the teachers' table.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore, could we have a word in private with you before the Sorting, please? It's quite important," Sirius said.  
  
"If it is that important, yes, please step into the little room here..."  
  
Once the door was closed, Remus told Dumbledore about his mistake on the train.  
  
"Daniel Norris? Well, if he should be sorted into any house other than Gryffindor, where you can keep him under control until after the feast I'll obliviate him. If he is getting into Gryffindor you can see to it that he does not say anything. I should think that this will suffice."  
  
Remus was relieved.  
  
"Yes, that should do just fine. Thank you, Professor."  
  
"You are very welcome, my boy. I would really like to see you leave Hogwarts at the end of your seventh year, not before that."  
  
Remus beamed.  
  
"Now you should rejoin your friends at the Gryffindor table. I am sure we are almost ready to start the Sorting. You wouldn't want to miss seeing your brother sorted, would you?"  
  
They all returned to the Great Hall and the boys took their seats on the spots Peter and James had kept free for them. Remus took Sirius' hand under the table. He followed the Sorting. There were a couple of new Gryffindors in the first few first years to be sorted. Then Professor McGonagall called:  
  
"Lupin, Rupert."  
  
Rupert hopped to the stool, sat down and vanished under the hat, which shouted "GRYFFINDOR" only seconds later. Rupert took it off, beamed and was off to the table where his brother sat in a dash.   
  
"Hey, Roop! Glad you made it here!" Remus said, beaming, too.  
  
"Me too! It's just the coolest house!"  
  
His housemates could only agree with that and welcomed their newest member with lots of applause. They turned to see what would happen with Daniel. He came up and was sorted into Hufflepuff. Remus looked over to Dumbledore surreptitiously and saw that the headmaster had lifted his hand only slightly in Daniel's direction. He sighed with relief. Daniel would be oblivious of that disastrous knowledge now and would be all the better for it. Rupert was a bit sad that his best friend from primary school was in a different house.  
  
"Don't worry, Rupert, you can still be friends with Dan! There's the library and the Great Hall where you can spend free time together."  
  
"Yeah, you're right."  
  
"And you're surely going to make some friends here in Gryffindor."  
  
After the feast and the speech from Dumbledore the new fifth year Gryffindor prefects rounded up the first years and took them up to the Gryffindor tower. Remus turned to Sirius and was about to go when he heard Dumbledore calling him:  
  
"Mr. Lupin, a word please."  
  
Remus turned around. Dumbledore smiled and said:  
  
"It's been taken care of. You need not worry that it will be spread."  
  
"Thank you, sir! I was such a fool not to keep my mouth shut."  
  
"On the other hand it is very nice to know that you can be at ease around some people, Remus. You must cherish that."  
  
"Yes, I do. You have not even an idea to what extent."  
  
And he gave Sirius a mischievous glance.  
  
"That is excellent. Have a good night, gentlemen!"  
  
"Good night, Professor!" Remus and Sirius chorused.   
  
They followed their housemates up to the tower slowly. Their curfew wasn't just yet, so they took their time. Sirius took Remus' hand and held it tightly in his own.   
  
"How do you feel about it, Remus? Would you mind that people knew about us or do you want to keep it among us?" Sirius asked.  
  
"I want to make it clear that you're mine, love! I'm not about to start worrying about others flocking around you. They may look, but definitely not touch! Besides it will chase away all those girls trying to get your attention."   
  
Sirius grinned. He loved Remus' possessiveness. For the first time in his life he didn't worry about being someone's 'possession' as he wanted to belong to Remus fully. Walking up the many stairs they moved closer and by the time they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady Sirius had his arms around Remus' shoulders and Remus' was firmly around Sirius' waist.   
  
"Well, what do we have here? If you two aren't quite the lovebirds..." the Fat Lady said.   
  
She was chatting with a lady from another portrait and Remus knew that now the news about their relationship would be spread within hours. He gave the Fat Lady the password, she swung forward and let them enter through the big hole behind her. When they stepped through they noticed that there were only a few fifth, sixth and seventh years left in the room, the younger ones were all on the way to their dormitories already. Some of their housemates looked around to see who was coming in late. Seeing the couple, some of them gaped quite open-mouthed.  
  
"We just wanted to let everyone know that both of us are taken!" Sirius declared, grinning.  
  
Some of the people looked rather non-plussed. Some of the girls looked deeply disappointed that two of the best looking Gryffindor sixth years were unavailable for the female population of the school and others just shrugged. Lily Evans actually came to them and smiled. Sirius knew that the smile was meant for Remus, who was the only one of the Marauders Lily actually liked.   
  
"Congratulations, Remus, that's good to know! You need someone..."  
  
"Thanks, Lily. He's good for me, believe me! And we're very happy," Remus declared.  
  
"Good!"  
  
Soon the excitement died down and within days they were back into the routine of classes again. Of course the rumour about the gay couple went through the school within a day, but they sat it out and after a while the whispers died down.  
  
The surprise turned out to be additional Quidditch matches with two teams from Beauxbatons who would come to play two friendship games in a mini tournament around the Easter break with the two top house teams of Hogwarts. That was a reason for James, who was the new captain of the Gryffindor team to rouse them early three times a week to do physical exercises and Quidditch training. Three players had left the team at the end of the last year and so there was need to hold tryouts for a second Beater, a Keeper and a Seeker. The positions were filled with a third year for the Beater, Lily Evans as Keeper and Remus as the new Seeker. After that was made known to Madam Hooch she scheduled the Gryffindor matches so that none of them would fall on a full moon night or the two days around. Remus had then accepted the position without fear of discovery or failing the team. Sirius trained his new Beater colleague hard. It was fun for him and he quickly managed to bring the new team member up to speed.   
  
And who would have thought that Lily was a superb Keeper? She had tried out because her friend Dari had asked her to. Dari Sanchez was a Chaser, together with James and a now fifth year named Mary Robins. James was quite happy with the new team, but he already planned to find reserves to build up a team for the time after the now five sixth years would leave.   
  
Barely ten days after the start of the term was the first full moon night. Remus surprised his friends by suggesting:  
  
"Why don't we tell Poppy Pomfrey about you guys? She already knows that you know, but I think it would be good to have at least a few adults know about your Animagi."  
  
James, Sirius and Peter pondered this for a day and then they decided to give it a try. They went to the hospital wing on the Saturday before the full moon and were lucky, too, as no one was there at the moment. Poppy looked at them and asked:  
  
"Hello there. Anything amiss with one of you?"  
  
"No, Madam Pomfrey. It's just, we wanted to talk to you about something concerning Remus..." Sirius said.  
  
"What is it?" she asked.  
  
She immediately softened down when it was about Remus, because he had become her little darling. She was quite protective of him.  
  
"Well, only indirectly. You see, the three of us did something once we knew he was a werewolf. We searched for something that would help him and found out that werewolves are not dangerous to animals. Magical or non-magical," James started.  
  
"That's interesting. If he'd bite any of them they wouldn't be affected normally, that's right. And?"  
  
"Well, that gave us lots to think about. First we thought we'd just find a big dog or something, like a friend for him, you know. But then we came back to our third year and Professor McGonagall talked about Animagi..." Sirius continued.  
  
Poppy's eyes went wide.  
  
"Tell me you didn't go ahead and do something that foolish to try..." she said, almost choking.  
  
"Actually, yes, we did... and we managed it last year..." James said, grinning.  
  
"Look!" Remus said and then there were three animals, looking at the nurse.   
  
Peter, the rat, quickly climbed up the stag's legs and body to place himself between the antlers. James, the stag, scratched the floor with his hooves and Padfoot, the dog, barked and let his tongue loll. Remus immediately petted Sirius and got his face licked.  
  
"Wow."  
  
That was all she said.   
  
"That's amazing. Can you turn back?"  
  
Within seconds the three boys were back. She stared at them, truly in awe. She was amazed that they had mastered the transformation and she was amazed at the display of friendship towards Remus. She looked at Remus, who smiled.  
  
"Does anyone else know about this?" she asked.  
  
"No," Sirius said.  
  
"You know that you need to be registered."  
  
"Yes, but we thought we'd do that after we leave Hogwarts," James said.  
  
"Good. I suppose you want me to keep quiet about this?"  
  
"If you could do that we'd be very relieved. We just thought we needed to have an adult or two who know about it."  
  
"So you are actually spending the full moon nights with Remus?" she asked.  
  
The boys nodded.  
  
"Dear me... what if he bites you?"  
  
"Been there, done that... nothing happens. We've wrestled quite a bit and of course I caught a bite or two, but since I'm still not a werewolf it apparently doesn't matter," Sirius said, beaming.  
  
"That relieves me quite a bit, Sirius. What about Peter? I mean, he's a pretty tiny rat and normally a wolf wouldn't bother with a rat long..."  
  
"He was quite scared the first time we went in, but we knew he was also small enough to slip out anywhere or to hide easily, so it wasn't so bad. Turned out that the wolf must have accepted us as a pack or something," James said.  
  
"This is absolutely amazing. Are you sure you don't want to entrust Albus and Minerva with this? I'm sure they'd explode at first, but then they'd probably just be proud of you. That's no small feat, especially since you have mastered it at such a young age and on your own!"  
  
"We'll think about it. We thought to tell you first, because you noticed that I hardly had more than a few little scratches the last three transformations before the summer break."  
  
"So that was why. Well, I never! You three are really good friends, I don't think that's ever been done before for such a reason! Thank you for trusting me with your secret."  
  
On the full moon night Remus went to the Whomping Willow, which he was now allowed to do alone. He usually went there on a hidden path from a not very well known exit out of the castle so he wouldn't be spotted from the school. He waited for his friends, who joined him not much later. They were good and stayed inside of the Shrieking Shack for the night. James watched how Moony reacted to Padfoot. And he was amazed, because the wolf really was fond of the dog, groomed and licked him for a long time and growled at him and Peter. James almost laughed about it. He decided that if the canines wanted to be alone, he'd just lie down and sleep in a corner of the room. The rat joined him there presently.   
  
The wolf and the dog wrestled and Moony made it clear who the boss was. Padfoot registered it with some amusement. The wolf was almost as big as the dog and he was strong. For the largest part of the night they played around the house, but when Sirius got tired he nudged Moony up to the bedroom and onto the huge four poster bed in there. Then he laid down next to the wolf and licked him. Moony whined a bit and then finally found some sleep. Sirius kept licking for a while, then slept, too.   
  
Remus woke up when the transformation back to his human form started and when it was over he fell back on the bed, exhausted, sore, spent. Sirius held up his dog form to keep the naked boy warm. Remus buried himself in the warm fur of his mate. Though they had yet to fully consume their relationship he knew full well that he had found his mate. He snuggled close to the dog and found sleep again.   
  
James and Peter were up as soon as they heard Remus transform. When all was quiet again they went up to the bedroom to peek inside. Remus was sleeping curled around Sirius, who was still in his dog form.   
  
"We let them sleep for yet another while... classes won't start for another two hours and Remus will need to get rest at the hospital wing until at least lunch time..." James said.  
  
"But it takes quite a while to get back to the castle," Peter remarked.  
  
"Right. Well, then we had better wake them up."  
  
They woke up their friends and helped Remus to the hospital wing, where Poppy took care of him. A quick glance over her patient told her that he was probably only tired.  
  
"A bath and then back to bed with you, Remus. And you three get a bit of rest and then off to breakfast!"   
  
"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey..." they chorused and left, but not before Sirius had kissed Remus tenderly.  
  
"I'll come by later, love," he promised.  
  
In this manner the first part of the school year passed quite nicely. There were a bit less pranks, as James had toned it down quite a bit to woo his beloved Lily. He followed his mother's suggestions and Lily warmed up to him noticeably. She was a bit more integrated into James' circles because she was on the Quidditch team now, where she played her part very well.   
  
All the while Remus and Sirius grew together more and more closely. They had decided to use the bed furthest away from James' and Peter's to not disturb them as much. And they didn't spend one night apart anymore. Remus' transformations were still painful, but he was able to bear them with more ease, knowing that he didn't have to be alone.   
  
James was not too miffed when Sirius told him that the Lupins had invited him to spend Christmas with them. They also invited James and Peter for the last days of the vacation. Both happily promised to be there.   
  
The trip home was a happy one. Rupert turned up for a part of it, but otherwise the Marauders were among themselves. Remus spent most of the time on Sirius' lap, either napping or snogging or reading. The others were amazed at the many things Sirius and Remus were able to do while sitting on each other's laps. They seemed to be connected with some invisible rope, as for the past months they had not been seen one without the other. It had exposed them to a number of very low jokes from the Slytherins, but they managed not to pay them any mind. Remus would hold his boyfriend in check, but they had hexed the Slytherins back a couple of times. Bellatrix had woken up one morning covered in blisters that oozed lots of water. They had looked awful, but were completely harmless. But it took two days until they vanished entirely and she was of course still fuming about the incident.   
  
During the first term Remus and Sirius had both celebrated their seventeenth birthdays. They were now regarded as adults and with their birthdays coming they had received information letters from the Ministry that their restriction of performing magic outside of school had been lifted and that they were allowed to learn to apparate and to take their licensing test. Which they planned to do during the break in the days between Christmas and New Year.   
  
When they arrived at King's Cross station the Lupins, Potters and Pettigrews were all there to welcome their children home. They all met up and greeted each other, then they fixed the dates when Peter and James would be going to the Lupins. The Potters knew of course that there would be a full moon, but Venetia and Richard had assured them that Remus was kept in a very secure cellar, so they didn't worry. After all, Remus had a rather large amount of siblings and those were all still very fine. And the Pettigrews were totally oblivious of that little fact, so they were happy to let Peter join his friends for the week after the New Year.   
  
The Lupins took Rupert, Sirius and Remus to their well sized Muggle car and drove them to their home. When they got there, Remus pulled Sirius immediately up to his room and they dropped their trunks somewhere. Sirius looked around. The room was as neat as Remus was and looked very nice. There were loads of books of course, but it also contained a number of toys, stuffed animals and a big desk. It was colourful, friendly and cosy. Sirius loved it at once.  
  
"Should have seen the mausoleum they kept me in at Grimmauld Place," he mumbled.  
  
"Bad?"  
  
"Worse. Dark, dank, dull, dreary would be the first adjectives that come to mind."  
  
"Oh."  
  
At dinner Sirius was surprised that there were a lot more siblings who came to welcome their younger brothers back from school. Richard, who was engaged to be married in spring, turned up with his fiancée, Marisa. He was thirty-four now, a fact that his mother didn't tire to tell him meant it was about time to settle down with a spouse. Sam was married, but she and her husband weren't in a hurry to have a house full of children. Still, they had a daughter who was three years old. Roxanne wasn't married, but she had twin girls who were two years old. The encounter that had led to the conception of the twins had been a mistake and the father didn't even know about the children. Roxanne had kicked him out before she had known herself. She had a steady boyfriend though and wasn't interested in getting married just yet.   
  
"I thought you said a sister and two younger brothers, Remus..." Sirius whispered to Remus' ear after he'd been introduced to the whole family.  
  
"Sorry. Didn't want to fill your head about all of them. I thought since you were so sad about your own failure of a family you'd be saddened even more knowing about mine..."  
  
"Probably would have... back before we were together."  
  
Sirius was introduced to Remus' older siblings as his boyfriend. Richard grinned broadly when he shook Sirius' hand and said:  
  
"That's great! We've heard tons about you, Sirius, Remus usually doesn't shut up about you, James and Peter when he's here. It's great he's found more than a friend in you. You must have been the first people to accept him as a werewolf apart from us. He's always held the spot of our darling baby brother."  
  
Sirius beamed. He was so happy for Remus to have such a good family. To have siblings who were looking out for him. He thought the girls were okay, too, Sam a casual and intelligent leader, Roxanne and Julia the more mischievous younger sisters.   
  
"So, are things still as cosy as ever up in Gryffindor tower?" Roxanne asked.  
  
"More than ever," Sirius replied, looking at his boyfriend.   
  
"Great! I loved that place. It was so much home."  
  
"It definitely is to us," Remus said.  
  
Sirius was almost a bit intimidated by so much happy family. But he loosened up to it soon, because even more than Martha Potter Venetia cuddled him. He was amazed at her ability to do so, while she cuddled all of her children and the grandchildren at the same time. She was a very motherly type, but definitely one with a sharp intellect and her wit showed Sirius from where Remus had his dry humour. He opened up to his mother-in-law quickly, because she took some time to get to really know that boyfriend of her son's. After several conversations with him she told Richard one night when they went to bed:  
  
"There's much in Sirius, Richard. You give him a chance to talk and he doesn't shut up about Remus. He really loves him."  
  
"Would you believe that the Blacks were able to conceive someone like Sirius?" Richard said, grinning.  
  
"Oh, he has told me a few things about them. He's really had a pretty hard time, I don't think he exaggerated anything. I rather expect him to have kept a few things secret."  
  
"He's quite the character. But he seems to be sincere with Remus."  
  
"Definitely. I've also had an owl from Poppy last week, telling me that Sirius is always there in the mornings after transformations, how much he cares for Remus and does everything to make it easier for him."  
  
Richard slipped under the duvet and turned to Venetia. He was happy for his son. He'd much rather have him gay and in a happy relationship than straight and struggling to find an understanding partner.   
  
"I imagine that the people at the Registry won't mind that he doesn't sire children either."  
  
"So far it's not been proved that lycanthropy is hereditary, Richard."  
  
"I know. But they still act like it is. This way will be easier. And he's happy. Have you ever seen him so cheerful?"  
  
"No, I haven't. I'm only glad that he doesn't have to be alone. The family's all there for him, but that's not the same as a life partner. Having a couple of rock solid friends and the family will keep Remus on track. He's aiming to become an Auror, but you know firsthand how much he'll have to fight to become one."  
  
"If he even gets the chance to apply. There's a load of people in the Ministry who think that no part-humans should be allowed to work there. But we couldn't do without brilliant young people like Remus, so I'll keep fighting to hold them up."  
  
"There's something in the works. There's two potions masters who are working on a potion to alleviate the transformations. They're nowhere there yet though," Venetia said.  
  
"Oh! Are you one of them?"  
  
"No. But I know one of them. He's told me about his work. He'll be looking for people to help testing the potion sooner or later, but not just yet, that's why I'm not bringing it up just yet. I'm quite sure Remus would be interested. And I'm helping with some of the research."  
  
"But that could be dangerous..."  
  
"I know."  
  
Remus and Sirius went to bed with no worries. They had made themselves familiar with each other's bodies and started to venture into more intimate things.   
  
They had learned a few helpful spells from Poppy Pomfrey who was never too prudish to talk about sex. Any student who asked her questions got open replies. She taught the older girls to brew contraceptive potions or taught them the spells. She sometimes called boys to her office of whom she knew they were with a girl to check that they knew their responsibilities. And if they didn't they learned it on the spot. The school had long since kept up this approach to hormonal teenagers. It had been a co-ed school since the beginning a thousand years ago. It was the main marriage market in the wizarding world. Most of the relationships were formed at the school and confirmed later. There was rarely a child born out of wedlock because the school's nurses had seen to it that the students knew what they were doing. Talking about it quite openly had proved to be a fairly successful approach.  
  
There were also fairly few divorces, mostly because the young adults were allowed to collect experiences with the other gender in a well protected and guarded surrounding.   
  
And then there was the influence of the sixties and seventies in the Muggle world, which was brought into Hogwarts through the many Muggle-born students. They had brought in more open attitudes towards other models of living arrangements. 


	5. 05 Christmas Break

Title: Baby Boom! 5/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**5. Christmas break**  
  
Venetia was a good mother. As such she decided that the happiness of her son was a lot more important than his sexual orientation. As a former Ravenclaw she went into the books immediately to learn about homosexuality to be there if her son entrusted her with questions. And within two days after the boys had been with the family they already talked. Remus helped Venetia in the kitchen, while Sirius entertained Rupert and Rowland by playing Exploding Snap with them.  
  
"I can see you and Sirius are very happy together, Remus," Venetia remarked.  
  
He looked over at her, cutting up carrots the Muggle way. Then he admitted:  
  
"We are, mum. It's amazing to be with him."  
  
"I'm glad for that, love. And I'm okay with it."  
  
"I'm glad for that, too, mum. It would have been hard to both be estranged from our families. He really needs some kind of a family now, you know."  
  
"I know. I'm glad he's already found it with the Potters, too. - Did you two become intimate already?"  
  
Remus blushed. Venetia saw it and smiled.  
  
"You're cute when you blush, sweetheart."  
  
"I'm not cute!" he protested.  
  
"Your blushing says a lot though. Did you?"  
  
"Not all the way..." he admitted.  
  
"Will you?"  
  
"Yes, I think so. I want to in any case. It feels so good to feel him. I know he loves it, too."  
  
"It's part of being in love, Remus. I'm still not past that with your dad, and honestly, I hope I never will..."  
  
"Mum! I didn't need to know that, really!" Remus cried.  
  
She laughed out loud and said:  
  
"Maybe not, love, but don't forget that all seven of you are the products of our love. So, yes, I think you do need to know that your dad and I are also still lovers. It helps us to understand what you're feeling right now. It would be great if what you felt for each other would hold..."  
  
"It's not that I'm entirely free to choose who I want, mum. I think, that the wolf has a bit of something to say to that. It doesn't torment me when I'm with Sirius. It's just quietly there in the background. At least that's how it feels."  
  
"And would it make itself known if you were with someone it didn't accept, do you think?" Venetia was genuinely interested.   
  
"I think so. I haven't tried. It's been Sirius for me for at least the past two or three years. Just didn't know that he was after me, too... so it's quite okay. I'm calm and can remain quiet."  
  
"That's very good then..."  
  
"This is done. Do you need something else cut up?" he asked and pointed at his neat pile of carrot cubes.  
  
"Looks lovely. Could you treat the celery in the same manner?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
It had been a while since Remus and Venetia had cooked together. They both liked to do that, and if they did it together they usually did it the Muggle way to have some time for a chat. Venetia was probably the only person who could talk with Remus about the wolf inside of him without making him uncomfortable. He knew she really was interested in what was going on inside of him and she was not the least bit afraid of him. He never felt fear from her in any case.   
  
"Do you think there's something in the claim that werewolves are mated for their whole life to only one partner?" she asked.  
  
"I've no idea. I only know that I'm really not interested in anyone else but Sirius, but I think I wouldn't be even if I wasn't a werewolf. Question is only how long it lasts. I do believe though that it's got nothing to do with sex. I mean, the books say that the first intercourse would do the mating thing, I'm not sure I want to believe that. I rather think that the wolf supported my decision and did treat me a bit less bad for it. So for that I've already mated."  
  
"There is something of the wolf inside of you, even when you're human, Remus. Wolves don't like to be alone and I know you like some solitude now and then, but you need to be included in a family or your group of friends."  
  
"That's true. But humans are no different there..."  
  
"You're right about that."  
  
Sirius turned up in the door after finishing a last round of Exploding Snap with Remus' younger brothers. He had heard the last few exchanges between mother and son from the entrance to the kitchen. They hadn't noticed him yet. He smiled, watched them quietly for a while and finally came into the kitchen. He walked up to Remus and kissed him on the neck.   
  
"Ouch!" Remus had jumped and promptly cut himself lightly into a finger.   
  
He brought the finger to his mouth to suck the blood away. Then he turned to Sirius and scolded him:  
  
"Just for that you can continue the cutting here, Sirius! You've startled me!"  
  
"Sorry, love. Pass the knife..."  
  
Sirius wiped the knife clean and continued where Remus left off. Venetia just grinned and looked at Remus' finger.  
  
"Doesn't need a healing charm, love, it's a tiny bit... your wolf takes care of that in five minutes."  
  
"Yes, but I'll bleed until then..." Remus mumbled.  
  
But within five minutes he gently started to play with Sirius' hair while he watched his boyfriend cut up the celery. In the meantime Venetia had taken care of the roast, which she fried in a pan and now set into a bowl to put it into the oven once the vegetables were cut up. She had cut the onions and garlic, added some broth and waited for the carrots and celery cubes. Sirius brought them.  
  
"Just spread them around the roast. Great. That'll go into the oven for a while."  
  
The boys both helped her with the rest of the dishes and talked all the while. They were glad to be able to talk to someone about their love who wasn't only understanding, but genuinely interested.  
  
When they closed the door to Remus' room to go to sleep that night, Sirius said:  
  
"I love your mum, Remus! I really like Mrs Potter, but your mum manages to be motherly housewife, intellectual researcher and witty comedian all together. She's great!"  
  
Remus smiled.  
  
"Good. I hear it's always good if one gets a nice mother-in-law."  
  
"In that respect you're definitely drawing a lousy lot. You don't even want to get closer to my mother than ten kilometres if you've half a mind. Since you have a full one..." Sirius said, bitterness dripping from his mouth.  
  
"I know. The way you described her she must really be horrible."  
  
They undressed and slipped under the covers until they were cosy and warm. Both cuddled for a while and started to caress each other. Whenever he got close to Sirius Remus felt fire course through his body, his heart was beating fast and he loved to breathe in and pick up the scent of his lover. Remus was happy. He had always felt comfortable in the warmth of his family, but this was a completely different sort of happiness. He felt it deep inside of his stomach, from where it spread into the very last fibre of his body. He snuggled up to Sirius and turned in his arms and pressed his back against his lover's front.   
  
"Mm," he purred.  
  
Sirius pulled him close. Being so close to Remus didn't really come naturally to him. His upbringing had not included any form of affectionate closeness. His parents had strongly discouraged Sirius and Regulus becoming close friends and had hardly ever touched their children. On the contrary, Sirius had been exposed to quite a lot of domestic violence. Being wizards the Blacks didn't even need to touch their children to achieve that. While Regulus was broken to their wishes Sirius never stopped to rebel against their views.   
  
It was Remus who taught him to love. He had been smitten with his friend for a while before he even realised what it was that he felt. Having never known love he had an even harder time to accept that he was, in fact, in love with Remus. It had taken him at least a year to even realise it. Now they had been together for six months and they had learned a lot about being close. Sirius loved the feeling of having Remus in his arms. It gave him strength, confidence and of course it made him quite randy. Remus wasn't all that shy since they were together. On the contrary, he had learned to be quite manipulative if he wanted Sirius to become more physical. Remus was ready for the last step, he wanted to make love to Sirius.   
  
Both nearly jumped off the bed when all of a sudden a flame sprang up in the middle of the room and out of it they recognised Fawkes, Dumbledore's pet phoenix. Remus put his hand on his chest to still his heart beating. Sirius looked at the bird and started to grin.  
  
"Hello Fawkes," he said.  
  
His rather frequent visits at the headmaster's office had given him ample opportunities to meet the phoenix. Fawkes flew down on the bed. They both noticed he had a letter in his beak.  
  
"Is that for us?" Remus asked.  
  
Fawkes only dropped the letter. He looked up at them and Sirius petted his fiery red head tenderly. Fawkes trilled happily and flew up again before settling down on the cross beam of Remus' four poster.   
  
"Looks very much like it, love. D'you think it's from Dumbledore?" Sirius whispered.  
  
"Most probably."  
  
The letter was addressed to them both. Remus picked it up and started to open it. Sirius looked at Fawkes and remarked:  
  
"Bet he's waiting for an answer..."  
  
Remus pulled the single sheet from the envelope. Reading it his eyes got round. Sirius looked worriedly at him, but then Remus just passed him the letter wordlessly.  
  
"Dear Remus and Sirius  
  
I am aware that you young people have started a relationship. I have gone through some old literature about werewolves and their spouses and have come across some interesting facts that I would like to discuss with the both of you. If you would kindly grip Fawkes' tail feathers you will be brought to my office.   
  
I allow myself to remind you that it would be a good idea to inform your parents about your short visit here before you leave.  
  
Fondly  
  
AD"  
  
Sirius and Remus looked at each other and jumped off the bed to get dressed again. They went to find Venetia and Richard to show them the letter. Fawkes followed them out of their room and sat on Remus' shoulder. Richard read the letter and passed it on to his wife.  
  
"Well, I think you might better do what he asks you to do," he suggested to the boys.  
  
"Yes, we will. Just wanted to let you know, dad. I suppose we'll get back the same way we go there."  
  
They put their cloaks on and both boys turned up to grip Fawkes' tail feathers as instructed. The bird took off and apparated them directly into Dumbledore's office.  
  
"That's really cool!" Sirius beamed, looking around.  
  
"Wow, Fawkes! You're one hell of a powerful little fellow," Remus whispered, caressing the bird who butted his head against his hand for more.  
  
"Ah, my letter has worked! Good evening, gentlemen," Dumbledore said with a smile, entering the office from his private chambers. "I trust your voyage with Fawkes has been short and easy?"  
  
"Good evening, Professor! It was amazing!" Sirius grinned.  
  
"Very good. Now if you would like to take a seat here on this sofa, then I could explain to you what I have learned. I need to ask you a private question first though."  
  
They both sat down and watched as Dumbledore conjured a tea table with a complete tea on top of it and poured cups for all of them. Remus added sugar and milk, Sirius drank it black.   
  
"Just ask, Professor, if it should be too private we can still choose not to reply..." Remus said.  
  
"Absolutely. What I have learned only works if both of you are still a virgin. In other words I need to know if you have already taken your relationship to the more intimate stage and if not, if you are planning on doing so."  
  
"Oh..." Remus blushed.  
  
"No, we haven't and yes, we want to," Sirius replied, unfazed.  
  
"And neither of you have had previous sexual experiences of any kind?" Dumbledore asked on.  
  
"Well, we've done some things..." Sirius admitted, "just not gone all the way..."  
  
Dumbledore smiled and said:  
  
"That should not be a problem, then I can tell you what I have found. You have certainly heard over and over again that werewolves are supposed to mate for life and that the bond would be established through the first intercourse, have you not?"  
  
"I've read that in more books than I care to count, Professor. Even my mum asked me what I thought about this. I said I couldn't imagine, but what do I know? I've been in love with Sirius for the past two years and before I wasn't even interested in anything like a relationship," Remus explained.  
  
"I would have thought so. Now it isn't a myth for no reason. You know that one says that there is no smoke without a fire, however tiny. This book here..." he summoned a thin old volume, "tells of life-bonded werewolves. It talks about them becoming very powerful through their bond, no matter whether they were bonded with another werewolf or with a human partner. No matter whether it is a member of their own or the other gender. It talks about the rites to activate the bond, which are indeed of a sexual nature. The only condition is that both partners want to be bonded and are virgins. I have dug a bit deeper and have found that since the days when the prejudices against werewolves started to bloom there were no bonded werewolves registered anymore, but upon inquiry the Registry did not say that these bonds were banned. In other words if the two of you would like to bond, which would be for life, mind you, then you could follow the rites and become a life-bonded couple."  
  
Sirius looked at Remus who sat white-faced and still. He knew that he would never love anyone the way he loved his Moony and he waited with baited breath for what Remus would have to say to this proposition. Remus stared straight ahead and swallowed.  
  
"I know I will love Sirius for as long as I live. But would it be fair to him?" Remus asked with a small voice.  
  
"You should read this book together, Remus, and then you would soon realise that the bond serves both parties. The powers you will gain, Sirius will gain as well. Read this and when you return from your break, tell me what you think of it. Will that be fine with you?"  
  
Remus nodded and took the proffered book. They talked briefly about their vacation so far and that they were doing fine, then Dumbledore led them to the fireplace and said:  
  
"You can both floo back home from here."  
  
They both took a pinch of floo powder and wished Dumbledore a good night before speeding off through the network. Landing safely in the Lupins' living room fireplace they informed Remus' waiting parents of the conversation with the headmaster. Richard looked astounded.  
  
"So there really is something in the myth, but not what is commonly perceived?" he asked.  
  
"According to Dumbledore it takes quite a while to become bonded. He told us to read about the rites in here," Remus said and showed the book.  
  
"Would you let me read that when you're done with it, love?" Venetia asked.  
  
Richard smiled, Remus grinned and said:  
  
"Sure. It's not going to take long."  
  
"Great. Now off to bed with you two! It's time! James and Peter will be here tomorrow!"  
  
"Yes, we're off! Goodnight!" Sirius said.  
  
Back in Remus' room they stripped their clothes and crawled into the bed. Remus picked up the book again and sighed.  
  
"Do you think this is a good idea?" he asked.  
  
"I do want to stay with you, love, you know that?" Sirius asked softly.  
  
"I know. Well, there's nothing for it, I want to know what this means."  
  
He turned on his stomach, shoved the pillow underneath his chest and opened the book. Sirius turned and read along. There were only something more than a hundred pages, so they read it through in one go. And when they were through they looked at each other. Remus sat up again.  
  
"Let's go through this more slowly, now that we know what it's about. It says here that werewolves can be bonded for life. Both partners have to be virgins. Well, technically we are, because we haven't gone all the way... we have to seclude ourselves for seven days and make love for the first time, then keep skin contact for seven times twenty-four hours and within that time frame have to make love at least once every twelve hours and then we'd be bonded?"  
  
"Sounds pretty nice to me..." Sirius said with a grin.  
  
Remus grinned, too.  
  
"Fucking at least once every twelve hours. And never once lose skin contact. We'd have to practically stick together for that time."  
  
"We'd not leave the bed anyway. We could use a shawl and wrap it around our hands when we sleep."  
  
"That's a whole week of fucking, Sirius!"  
  
"What's wrong with that? Are you afraid of not holding up? If even I am not afraid of that then you shouldn't be either... you can get it up in half the time I can..."  
  
"No, that's not it... just - when would we do it? Because I don't want to wait until the next longer break!"  
  
"Well, I'm quite sure Dumbledore will come up with ideas when we speak to him and tell him we'd be interested."  
  
Remus looked thoughtful. Sirius felt a pang of disappointment at his hesitance, even though it was typical for his Moony to first think everything through. Remus read over the passage that talked of the consequences.  
  
"High awareness of the partner's needs and feelings. Magical power surge by a factor of up to ten! Well that's a big plus. What with that Voldemort person and his followers around we'd make some difference to the Light side, that's for sure. Sexual performance raised in both partners. That's all on the plus side. Actually the only thing that speaks against it is your usual rashness, love..."  
  
"My usual rashness tells me that this will be good for both of us so why not do it? I love you, Remus. You know I do."  
  
Remus turned to Sirius and kissed him.   
  
"Yes, Sirius, I know you do. I love you, too. But you're aware of the fact that once again I'd be one of Dumbledore's study objects? Only that this time you'd be a part of it. I already feel like I'm his laboratory rat sometimes."  
  
"Even if... let him have his fun and study us, we'll just be happily mated."  
  
Remus laughed.  
  
"Okay. Let's give this to mum in the morning and see what she makes of it."  
  
They did that the next morning. Both allowed themselves to sleep in and turned up in the living room shortly before lunch.  
  
"I suppose you are ready to skip breakfast and dig right into lunch," Richard said, looking amused.  
  
"We've read the book last night and discussed it..." Remus admitted.  
  
"I expected that you would. So what does it say?" Richard asked.  
  
Remus outlined the contents. His father listened with interest and said:  
  
"I'll check into the legal side of this, Remus. It feels like fully blown marriage to me."  
  
"It did to me, too," Remus confirmed.  
  
"That would have a few legal consequences. But those are certainly beneficial for both of you. You are both of age now, so no consent of a guardian will be necessary. I can see why Dumbledore suggested it for you two, he'd be keen on having two exceptionally powerful wizards firmly on the Light side and in his ranks."  
  
"That's what makes me pondering over it. I feel a bit manipulated to be quite honest."  
  
"I can see where you're coming from, I think I would, too, if I were in your position, Remus. But if you discuss this with Albus, tell him. Tell him that you feel this way, if you don't tell him and go through with this under his supervision then you'd be in his hands, both of you."  
  
"Okay, that's what I'll do then."  
  
Venetia sat down with the book after lunch, rolled up in her favourite armchair next to the fire. She thought of Remus through reading the book, tried to apply the facts to him and think about them fitting her son or not. At the end she turned to Richard, passed him the text and said:  
  
"Read it for yourself, Richard. Personally I think it would be precisely what is needed to bind Remus into our society, to give him a home with someone who doesn't cast him out. And to give him security."  
  
Richard was still reading when the fire turned green and Peter stepped out of it, carrying his trunk and grinning at the Lupins.  
  
"Hello, Peter! It's nice to see you here!" Venetia welcomed him.  
  
"Hello, Mrs Lupin! I'm happy to be here. It wasn't easy to convince my parents to let me come. Christmas break is something almost sacro-family-sanct to them, you know."  
  
Venetia laughed.  
  
"Well, it is a family time alright. But friends are just as important as families, as it's with your friends you're planning your lives after leaving your parents' home to build up a new home of your own. Let's find Sirius and Remus, I think they went upstairs after lunch."  
  
She led Peter up the stairs and to Remus' bedroom, where they found the two boys actually busying themselves with homework for Potions.   
  
"Yay! Hi Peter! Good to see you, mate!" Sirius called out and jumped up from the bed where he had been reading over the book text to prepare his essay.  
  
"Hi Sirius! Hi Remus! It's great to be here! Ten days left of the break and we're all together, that's great!"  
  
"Shall I show Peter where he and James sleep, mum?" Remus asked, getting up to slap Peter's shoulder in greeting.  
  
"If you would do so, love, that would be just fine. Dinner at six thirty, okay? Anyone offering me help?"  
  
Sirius offered. He was only learning to cook with Remus and Venetia, but he enjoyed their time together in the kitchen and he could easily see why Remus liked it so much to cook with his mother.  
  
"Thank you, Sirius. Come down in about an hour, okay?"  
  
"I will, Mrs Lupin!"  
  
"Hey, it's about time you started calling me Venetia. If I read that book right, you're going to become something like my son-in-law, don't you think it would sound rather idiotic to call your mother-in-law by her title and surname?"  
  
Remus grinned. He pulled Peter from the room to show him the guestroom. Peter asked him:  
  
"What was that all about?"   
  
"Well, Siri and I want to stay together, no? So she's becoming like his mother-in-law..."   
  
"Ah! I see. Oh, this is a nice room."  
  
"You like it? Good. You can choose the bed."  
  
"Looks like a state room to me," Peter mumbled.  
  
"Dad is head of his department, he's got visitors to entertain sometimes. It has to be looking a bit stately for those, you know."  
  
"Oh yes, I forgot."  
  
"Come back to my room when you're settled, okay?"  
  
"I will. Thanks, Remus!"  
  
Ten minutes later Peter was joined by James, who dropped his stuff and came back to Remus' room just before Sirius left them to go and help in the kitchen. Like Peter and Sirius, James had never been to the Lupins' home before, they had always met at the Potters', when they were able to meet outside of school.   
  
"This is quite a posh place!" he remarked.  
  
"Just wait until you meet the whole family, James! Tomorrow is New Year's Eve and Venetia has invited all of her children for a party, that will be a lot of guests and then some," Sirius said.  
  
"Wow. What does that mean? I know you have a sister and two younger brothers, Remus, do you have more siblings?" James asked.  
  
"Three older sisters, one older brother and the two younger brothers. I came twelve years after my next older sister."  
  
"Oh! And how are they?"  
  
"Don't worry, they're great. Pampered me to no end. Mum said it was good that there wasn't much to spoil in me, because I'm so innately good, otherwise my older siblings would have done it..."  
  
James laughed.  
  
"She must know you well."  
  
"She does, believe me. No one knows me as well as she does. Well, except maybe Sirius."  
  
Richard had read the book. Remus' outline was quite accurate he thought, then he got up and went to the kitchen.  
  
"Finished?" Venetia asked.  
  
"Yes. Remus summed it up well. - What do you think about it, Sirius?" he wanted to know.  
  
"I think, it's a good thing. I think, it would give Remus some security, which he'll need badly once he's out on his own. He'll have a base in our relationship to rest and get new energy for the everyday battle he'll surely have to fight. He'll need reassurance all over the place. Remus is very strong, but people can hurt him easily and many do," Sirius said.  
  
"You're thinking of Remus so much, Sirius," Richard said softly, "But what would you gain?"  
  
Sirius smiled and looked Richard directly in the eyes.  
  
"The love of one of the most wonderful people I had the chance to meet until now. Peace. Togetherness in a way I never knew before. Security, too. Someone who understands me. Who can guide me. And sex."  
  
Richard laughed, but he put the book down on a pile of other books that were already on the end of the kitchen counter, then he pulled Sirius into a hug.   
  
"Welcome to the family, son," he said softly.   
  
He ruffled Sirius' black tresses and added to his wife and with a twinkle in his eyes:  
  
"And that's the final touch of testosterone for you, my love!"  
  
Sirius looked from Richard to Venetia trying to understand, but noticed it was a private joke between them.   
  
"Well, if the level of active brain cells would rise in the same proportion as the level of testosterone in this house I'd concede..." Venetia countered.  
  
Richard laughed and released Sirius.  
  
"You could call me Richard now, Sirius."  
  
"Thank you, Richard, I will..."   
  
Dinner was a pleasant affair. They had to eat in the dining room, because there were eight people at the table. Richard offered the older boys some wine to their meal and told Venetia:  
  
"But you're not going to cook yourself tomorrow, love? That would be a bit much... there are too many guests..."  
  
"Tishy will cook. I'll just enjoy what she produces. It IS a bit much for me."  
  
The boys were more than willing to help with the decoration of the living and dining room for the party. There would be quite a lot of guests from the Ministry as well. At five Venetia looked around and decided:  
  
"Good job, everyone! Now, off to get showered and dressed with all of you!"  
  
They all vanished in their bathrooms, to wash up and get dressed into their formal dress robes, which would be required for such a dinner party. The older Lupin children came in until shortly before half past six, then the invited guests arrived. They were received at the door by one of the Ministry house-elves who took their cloaks and hats. The formal living room filled up with guests for the socialising before the dinner, then they were led to the dining room where the large table was set up beautifully. Someone complimented Venetia on the decorations.  
  
"I've had the help of my lovely boys for that. They did a nice job, didn't they?"  
  
The evening went by quite nicely, but soon after the New Year had been welcomed, the guests started to leave the house again. The boys had drunk a bit too much and went to sleep in. They didn't turn up before lunch the next morning.   
  
In the next days Remus became moodier, paler and clung more to Sirius than ever, knowing that the dreaded cellar awaited him on the fifth. They still hadn't told Richard and Venetia about their Animagi and when the evening came Remus had to go down to the cellar. James, Peter and Sirius all wanted to go along, but Remus said:  
  
"No, there's not enough space in there! You can't come with me."  
  
"I can and I will," Sirius insisted.   
  
After half an hour of discussion Remus finally conceded and accepted Sirius. James and Peter thought that was okay, just as long as Remus wasn't alone. Remus went to get his usual hug from his mother and Richard pointed to the watch to remind Remus that it was time to go down. Sirius went along and slipped inside of the room just as Richard wanted to close the door.  
  
"Sirius! Are you crazy? Come out here this instant!" Richard shouted.  
  
"No. He'll not attack me, I promise. I've been with him for a few full moons now and since I'm not a werewolf you can rest assured that he will not hurt me," Sirius said stubbornly and pushed the door closed from the other side.   
  
Richard was speechless, but one look at the watch told him it was too late to fight this out. He locked and secured the door to the transformation room and went back up to find James and Peter, but for some reason they were nowhere to be found.   
  
"Now that's strange..." he thought.  
  
And he worried for the whole night about Sirius and about his son. What if Remus killed his lover? He usually slept little on full moon nights, but this night he didn't find sleep at all. It was Venetia who went down to retrieve Remus in the morning, but Richard accompanied her on this day.   
  
"Why are you coming along, love?" she asked him.  
  
"Because Remus wasn't alone in there last night. I can't believe what Sirius did, but it was too late to discuss last night. I'm full of horror images of what could have happened, Venetia!"  
  
She was shocked and hurried up to open the door to the cellar, where she found nothing unusual apart from the fact that the room didn't smell of blood. She turned on the light and found no traces of blood whatsoever. Richard gaped. The two boys were lying on the mattress, covered with a blanket, both asleep. Remus didn't even have a scratch. Venetia closed her eyes and opened them again, but there was still nothing to be seen. She looked at Richard.  
  
"I don't know what to say. You'd think he didn't even transform..." he mumbled.  
  
"You have no idea how glad I am that you didn't tell me about this last night," she said.   
  
"I thought you would be. Let's get them upstairs..."  
  
Both of them levitated one of the boys and brought them upstairs into their bed. As soon as Venetia straightened the duvet over them they turned to each other and slept on in each others' arms. Venetia smiled.  
  
"They're so cute," she said.   
  
Richard just smiled, put his arm around her shoulder and closed the door.   
  
"They still owe me an explanation for that terrible night they've caused me to have," he said.  
  
"Absolutely. Could have said something before. I really wonder how Sirius would survive this, too."  
  
Richard had an idea: "Could it be that a werewolf doesn't attack a mate?"  
  
"But I can't imagine that. The whole thing is a mystery to me."  
  
They had to wait until the afternoon when Remus and Sirius finally woke up shortly after lunch. Sirius stretched and immediately turned to Remus, who was waking up, too. Sirius leaned in and kissed his lover.  
  
"Morning, love."  
  
"Morning, Siri."  
  
"How are you?"  
  
"Sore, but okay."  
  
Sirius looked Remus over and kissed him again. He left the bed and got dressed quickly, to go down to the kitchen and fetch something to eat for Remus. He met Richard and Venetia there, who were quietly talking with James and Peter. Venetia looked up when she saw him coming.  
  
"Oh, there you are, Sirius. Is Remus awake, too?" she asked.  
  
"Hi. Yes, and he says he's sore but okay."  
  
"Good. Then go ahead, Sirius, I believe, you have something to tell me..." Richard said.  
  
Sirius grinned and transformed. He stretched out his front paws and looked up with big doggy eyes and the ears flopped to the front. Venetia started laughing out loud. She pointed at the dog, giggled and finally said:  
  
"Wouldn't that just be fitting Sirius to be a DOG!!!"  
  
James and Peter snickered.  
  
"Remus thought so, too, Mrs Lupin."  
  
"No wonder the two of you go together so well!"  
  
Venetia petted the dog in front of her. Then she looked up to James and said:  
  
"Well, now I'm also getting the point of Remus calling Sirius Padfoot. Come back, Sirius..."  
  
Sirius transformed back, sat on the carpet and crossed his legs. He grinned boyishly and looked up.  
  
"We desperately wanted to find something to help Remus. Knowing how he suffered out there was so hard to take. We saw how he looked after his transformations. So we decided to do this. Werewolves can bite animals all they like they won't change them to werewolves. Now he isn't alone anymore."  
  
Richard still didn't know what to say.   
  
"That's... I don't know what to say, really. This is incredible. You're an Animagus? How on earth did you manage that?"  
  
"Worked on it for more than two years. James and Peter are Animagi, too."  
  
"What? So what's your animal forms?"  
  
James showed off his stag and Peter transformed into the rat. Sirius picked the little rat up and scratched it on the head. The Lupins just shook their heads and sat there, looking at the animals in their house in awe.   
  
"You boys are absolutely amazing. Does anyone know about this?"  
  
"Only Poppy Pomfrey. We're going to tell Dumbledore one of these days though," Sirius replied, while James and Peter transformed back.  
  
"We thought of keeping it a secret until we leave Hogwarts, but we had to tell someone, so we thought we'd entrust Madam Pomfrey with it, she promised to keep it a secret," James said, "but we'll register when we leave school."  
  
Sirius got up again and asked:  
  
"I think I should do what I wanted to do when I came down... get something to eat for Remus..."  
  
Venetia stood up as well and led the way to the kitchen.  
  
"I've got a broth on the stove for Remus. He usually likes to eat lightly. Here, would you take that bowl up for him?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
Venetia quickly put a tray on the table with a fairly well sized bowl of soup and two slices of bread. She added a big goblet of orange juice.  
  
"There you go. And what would you like?"  
  
"Something left from lunch?"  
  
"Sure! Take that to Remus, then come down and get yours, okay?"  
  
"Just fine!" Sirius beamed, took the tray and levitated it upstairs to take it to Remus.  
  
James and Peter had arrived there already and talked with Remus.  
  
"Hey, sweetie, here's your lunch!" Sirius called.   
  
He set up the tray in front of Remus who smiled and started to eat.  
  
"I'm going back down to get mine now!"  
  
Sirius returned with another tray five minutes later and sat down next to Remus to eat his lunch. They chatted while the two boys ate. Somehow neither Sirius nor Remus brought up the topic of their plan to get life-bonded in the near future. Both seemed to think it was something too private to talk about, even otherwise outgoing Sirius never even started to hint something about it.   
  
The rest of their break was spent with lots of playing, laughing and some talking about what was going on at the school. They returned to Hogwarts in high spirits. 


	6. 06 Mated!

Title: Baby Boom! 6/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**6. Mated!**  
  
On one of the first days back to school Sirius and Remus were called to Dumbledore's office. They went up there after dinner and were welcomed warmly. Remus returned the book to the headmaster.   
  
"Have you thought it all through?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"Yes, we have. We want to do it," Sirius said.  
  
"Very well. We will allow you to miss your classes for a week, though you will have to do the work afterwards of course. For that we have prepared a room where you can spend that week completely on your own. Your meals will be brought to you by house-elves. At the end of the time we will call you back. And the door will be hidden completely, so that no one can disturb you."  
  
Remus looked at Sirius.  
  
"And when..." he started.  
  
"Right now," Dumbledore said cheerfully and stood up from his chair.   
  
Remus and Sirius gasped. They followed Dumbledore to a corridor leading away from the headmaster's office down to his private quarters and then down a spiral staircase to another part of the tower which was topped by the headmaster's office. Three levels down they walked and then they were shown a small suite with a living area and a bedroom as well as a bathroom.   
  
"This will be your place for the next seven days. Remember that you will need skin contact throughout the seven times twenty-four hours. You may never let go or it will all be for naught. Do you trust yourselves to maintain that contact throughout your stay here?"  
  
Remus swallowed and nodded.  
  
"We thought we could use a shawl or something to ensure the contact when we sleep," Sirius said.   
  
"That is a very good idea. Now, you can summon house-elves through this little bell, which will sound down in the kitchens. There are some clothes for you in the bedroom, comfortable enough for day wear."  
  
Dumbledore waved his wand and Sirius held a long silk scarf, long enough to wrap around their wrists comfortably. Sirius smiled.  
  
"I will leave you to it then. I will inform your friends that you will be out of their dorm for the next week. Did you tell them about your plans?"  
  
"No, we didn't."  
  
"Do you want me to give them the reason for your absence?"  
  
"Not this one," Remus said, blushing.  
  
"Very well. Have an excellent week, gentlemen!"  
  
Dumbledore left the room, closed the door and sealed it, even though no one normally got to this part of the castle. Remus and Sirius looked at each other. Sirius pulled his lover into an embrace and kissed him.  
  
"How about starting this with a bath?" he asked.  
  
Remus nodded into his shoulder. He felt very insecure all of a sudden. He hadn't expected something like this so soon. But now there wasn't much left for them than pulling it through. They decided to go to the bathroom and shed their clothes. There was a nice large tub that beckoned them in as soon as they filled it and they took the opportunity to wash up thoroughly. A bit reluctantly they left the bath and dried themselves off. Sirius spell dried his long hair and brushed it shiny. Remus smiled, watching him at it. He took the opportunity to look at his lover. Sirius was tall, well built and had left all traces of baby fat behind long ago. His torso was well toned from the Quidditch training as a beater. Straight legs. Thick black pubic hair and a thin down of hair up to his navel and on his arms. Quite a bit of hair on his chest. Remus gently caressed Sirius over his upper arms and continued to his chest, down to his stomach. He smiled, because when he just stroked over Sirius' cock lightly he could feel it harden.   
  
"Mm," Sirius moaned.   
  
They quickly brushed their teeth and went to look at the bedroom. It was beautifully decorated and Sirius thought it must be a guestroom for high standing guests of the school. There was a superbly decorated four poster at one end, with dark blue velvet hangings, the bed was covered with light blue silk sheets and downy duvets in the same shiny dark blue as the hangings. There were carpets on the floor, wonderfully worked and soft to the touch of the boys' feet.   
  
"Wow."   
  
"Looks like paradise for our honeymoon, love!" Sirius remarked with a smirk.  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
They pulled back the covers and climbed into the bed, where they settled down for some cuddling.   
  
"I love you, Moony! Can't wait to feel you inside of me..."  
  
"Sure you don't want to make the start, love?" Remus asked back, stroking Sirius' side.   
  
"Absolutely."  
  
"Well then..."  
  
Sirius kissed Remus again and Remus returned the kiss immediately, both of them slowly getting hotter and more comfortable. Remus felt his skin reacting to Sirius' caresses. Having slept in the same bed since summer and having done a lot of things except for that last go Sirius knew exactly what he had to do to get Remus hot and hard. He kissed his lover again and after endless heated exchanges of kisses he moved down following the jaw to the throat and over the collarbone down to Remus' nipples, where he made a short stop on his way down to Remus' crotch. Remus caressed Sirius' back, stroked over the spine to Sirius' buttocks and gripped the one he could reach.   
  
And Sirius found his way to that already hard organ he wanted to feel sheathed firmly inside of himself. He licked it for a bit and then drew back to blow on it. Remus drew a sharp breath and sat up, becoming active now. He pulled Sirius into another kiss and shoved him on his back on the bed to take care of his cock for a while before starting to prepare him. Sirius turned around to lie on his stomach. Remus let his hands run over Sirius' back again.  
  
"Come on, start working on it, love!" Sirius urged him.  
  
"I love that view and I enjoy it, sweetheart," Remus replied.  
  
Sirius growled.  
  
"Anything amiss?" Remus teased.  
  
"Get on with it now! I want to feel you inside of me, Remus!"  
  
"Patience is a virtue, love."  
  
Remus said the spell that would clean Sirius' intestines completely. He cast a little lubrication spell and spread some of the stuff on Sirius' opening, nudging at the puckered ring of muscles to relax them as well as he could, then he started pressing his finger inside. Sirius moaned softly.  
  
"Feels good..." he mumbled.  
  
"Really? Well, then I'll continue, I think..."  
  
"Yeah... go in deeper!"  
  
Remus pushed in deeper, came back out again and slid a second finger in with the first. He hooked around behind the opening for a moment to loosen the muscles. He found that he glided well with his lubricated fingers, so he pressed them in as deep as he could get, until he was stopped by the rectal wall. He felt a round object behind and pushed against it. Sirius cried out loud, startled Remus who pulled his fingers back out immediately.  
  
"Oh, I'm so sorry, love, did I hurt you that badly?"  
  
Sirius breathed hard, shook his head and finally said:  
  
"No! Not hurt! That was the bloody most incredible feeling! Can you go there again?"  
  
Relieved, Remus returned to the previous place and searched for the same spot again.   
  
"Yes!" Sirius hissed.  
  
"'S that it?"  
  
"Spot on! Rub it a little!"   
  
Remus followed the order, smiling, but concentration showing on his face. Sirius instinctively pulled up his knees and lifted his body up a bit, pushing against the fingers.  
  
"Oh Merlin, this is good! It's a shot at my cock every time you as much as brush this spot!" he exclaimed.  
  
"Wow."  
  
It had been a good thing that the boys had taken their time to become more intimate, they were at ease with each others' bodies now, they knew what turned them on and they were ready to find out new things. It wasn't awkward at all, and after the initial surprise that they would go ahead with it at this point already it became exploration territory for Remus. He greatly enjoyed that exploration and so it didn't take him long to figure out how to pass this very tight opening of his mate's with his cock. Sirius knew the size of that cock already, after all he had learned to swallow most of it down in the past six months. He expected to feel quite a bit of pain. But since they weren't in a hurry Remus took his time in preparing Sirius. And Sirius loved his lover's work, since it turned him on immensely. He lifted himself up a bit and pushed against the fingers poking around inside of him. He felt Remus' free hand on his butt to keep the skin contact while the other hand picked up the cock. Remus placed the tip, slicked with a bit more of the lube right under the opening to push up just a little and breach the barrier. He gave a pretty good shove and the head slipped inside.   
  
"Aww..." Sirius made.  
  
"Hurts?"  
  
"Not much... feels great!" Sirius assured him.  
  
Remus pushed and found himself deep inside of Sirius.   
  
"Yes, it does feel great," he moaned.  
  
Sirius pushed against the cock, Remus pushed back and after a while they found a rhythm. Remus moaned and growled all the while he thrust into Sirius, the growing tension in his cock made him go faster and faster until he couldn't hold back anymore and let go, coming with more cries and growls than Sirius had so far heard from him. At the same time he grabbed Sirius' cock and stroked it, giving a lot of pressure to the head, when he pushed the foreskin over it. Sirius yowled, growled and finally came with a howl that fit the huge dog he was. They slumped down on the bed and Remus pulled back out. He buried his face in the small of Sirius' back for a moment. Some of his semen oozed out from Sirius' opening. Remus sniffed it and spread it over the cleft.   
  
Sirius slowly turned around, facing Remus again.   
  
"Gods, I loved that," he said, still panting.  
  
Remus smiled and kissed him.  
  
"I did, too. Won't mind to do that a couple of times in the next days..."  
  
"Does it have to be every twelve hours, sharp?" Sirius asked.  
  
"I don't think so. The way I understood it, it's more once during the day, once during the night at least."  
  
"Well, we should manage that, what do you think?"  
  
"I think I'll work you back to form, so you can show me how this feels as well..." Remus said.  
  
Two floors up Dumbledore packed a small globe into his desk and left to tell two boys in the Gryffindor tower that their friends would not be with them for an entire week.  
  
When he entered the common room every noise died down immediately. It was on very rare occasions that the headmaster would turn up in a house common room, and it certainly hadn't been seen in years before this moment. He asked for James and Peter.  
  
"They're up in their dorm, I think. Should I go and call them down here?" a fifth year asked.  
  
"No, I think they would prefer some privacy for what I have to tell them. Thank you, I am going there."  
  
He knocked on the door, which was opened by a worried looking James, who was rather surprised to see the headmaster in the door.  
  
"Professor! We are missing Remus and Sirius, weren't they coming to see you after dinner?"  
  
"Yes, James, which is why I am here. May I come inside?"  
  
"Yes, of course..."  
  
The room was slightly messy, but Dumbledore didn't seem to be fazed by that fact. He just said:  
  
"Your two friends will be out of commission for a full week. Expect them back next Tuesday in classes."  
  
"Oh! But why? They're not being punished for something or other, are they?" Peter asked anxiously.  
  
"No, Mr. Pettigrew, but there is something they have to do and they can only do this completely undisturbed. Do not go and look for them, because if they are being interrupted it would be very bad indeed. Rest assured that they are not in any kind of danger and they are well."  
  
James still looked very worried. This sounded very suspicious.  
  
"I'm worried about them..." he said.  
  
"There is no need, believe me. The worst that can happen to them is that they will feel a little sore and tired. May I ask the two of you to take meticulous notes in your lessons, because they will have to go through their homework for this week later on. And once again I must stress that you do not go looking for them, they will be back in a week. And they will probably tell you then what their task was."  
  
"Okay, Professor, I promise not to go looking for them. Quidditch practice will be a bit difficult without my Seeker and one of my Beaters though."  
  
"That shouldn't harm your success in the sport, Mr. Potter. That much I can promise you!"  
  
But the moment Dumbledore had left them, James ran to his trunk to retrieve the Marauder's Map.   
  
"I solemnly swear that I'm up to no good," he said and waited for the map to show on the parchment.   
  
Then he and Peter started to look over it to find where Remus and Sirius were.  
  
"What the heck? I can't see them," Peter said.  
  
"Neither can I. Do you think they might be outside of the castle?"  
  
"No idea..."  
  
"Let's follow the headmaster... there he goes, straight back to his office. Oh! There they are, almost only one dot, look! Where is that? It looks like it's right underneath Dumbledore's office!"  
  
"We won't be getting in there... and he was really adamant that we don't follow them."  
  
"Yeah. I still wonder, but there's probably nothing we can do..."  
  
But they kept the map under their eyes the whole evening. The two dots never parted, they just moved on a very small bit of the map and always stayed connected.   
  
"That's strange. Do you think they're shagging?" Peter asked.  
  
James looked at him in shock.  
  
"Looks like they're very close in any case. Do you really think Dumbledore is letting them shag and covering for it? Why would he do that? I mean, he obviously knows what they're up to... and it's supposed to take a whole week!"  
  
"Can't really imagine that. But seeing them connected all the time can't mean much different than them doing something very intimate," Peter thought aloud.  
  
"Yeah, you're right about that."  
  
The next day Peter and James went to their classes as usual and wondered that not one teacher asked about the absence of Sirius and Remus. The girls noticed that the boys didn't turn up for breakfast and asked James and Peter about it.  
  
"If their missing costs us any more points, Potter..." Lily said in a menacing tone.  
  
"...then what?" James shot back.  
  
"Let's just say that you're not the only one who knows a good hex or two," she replied coldly and tapped her left hand with the wand held in her right.  
  
"Well, let me assure you that Dumbledore told us last night they'd be gone for a full week and would return to school next Tuesday. And that's all he was ready to tell us."  
  
"Oh... well, that puts Remus out of commission as a prefect..." she growled.  
  
"Obviously. Complaints care of the headmaster, please," said James and went past her to get into the Transfigurations classroom.  
  
After three days in their room Remus and Sirius had almost lost all sense of time. They were happily coupling and hardly left their bed. Only when a house-elf knocked on the door informing them that food was on the table in the living room did they take breaks. The meals brought in was the only thing that helped them remembering to keep their lovemaking to be at least once in every twelve hours.   
  
Getting up meant taking care not to lose skin contact. They used the scarf, which they wound around Remus' right and Sirius' left wrist, since Remus was ambidextrous and could use his left hand as well as his right to eat. They would only pull a pair of silk pyjama pants on and sit cosily on the sofa by the fire to eat the delicious food they got. At one point Remus thought that the drinks were spiked with aphrodisiacs, or how else could he go on and on for so many days?  
  
Since there were a few books and a chessboard around they didn't get all too bored. They took the chessboard over to their bed and played a few matches there. Remus found a neat novel in the bookshelf and started reading it to Sirius while Sirius lounged next to him on the bed caressing him. They managed to never lose their skin contact quite easily, since they were practically glued to each other. It was only a bit awkward having to go to the toilet with the partner holding on, but that only enhanced their shared intimacy. And all the while they noticed that their magic sparkled. It started after about four days. Remus had left his wand on the table in the living room and needed it for something. Sirius' wand lay out of reach as well.  
  
"Can we get up and retrieve either yours or my wand, please, Siri?" Remus whined.  
  
"Let's try a little wandless summoning," Sirius said, pointed his index finger in the direction of his wand and casting "Accio wand".   
  
The wand came bursting over, almost knocking the wind out of Sirius.   
  
"Wow," said Remus.   
  
"Wow indeed. I know that summoning spells are no problem for me anymore, but I don't think anything ever came flying to me like this! Will have to learn to dose the spell down, I think!"  
  
"Let me try it, too..."  
  
Remus summoned his wand from the other room and was rewarded with the same result. Then they tried a few spells from the Charms textbook and found that they had to be very careful in casting them if they didn't want to have everything overdone. They dropped their wands.  
  
"That's bloody amazing! Now I see what Dumbledore meant with a surge of power that would come with the mating..." Sirius said.  
  
"Do you think that it will be even more? I mean we still have a couple of days left here, don't we?"  
  
"Yes, we do. I don't think that's the peak. This will be scary! Snivellus be warned!" Sirius giggled.  
  
"You will NOT misuse that power on Severus, Sirius! That would be highly unfair now," Remus chided his lover.  
  
Sirius pouted and sighed.  
  
"Yes, I suppose you are right."  
  
It was time for their dinner and then they returned to their bed which had been redone by the house-elves while they ate. It was now a lovely shade of lavender, the bed curtains, pillow-cases and the duvet covers a nice darker violet.   
  
"Not exactly a very male colour that," Sirius moaned.  
  
"Meaning you won't shag me on that or what?" Remus inquired.  
  
"I'll not go that far in rejecting it," Sirius countered immediately and pulled Remus down.  
  
A few hours later they connected their arms with the scarf again. Remus pressed his back firmly on Sirius' front and felt Sirius' arm around his waist.   
  
The seven days and seven nights passed quickly. At the end of them they were both extremely exhausted. They slept through most of the last day, taking the time to make some more love in the late morning and the late afternoon. And in the late evening they were finally released by the headmaster, who entered the living room, calling for them. Receiving no immediate reply he went on and poked his head around the door to their bedroom. Both were under the duvets and slept. Dumbledore smiled contentedly. He had followed their progress and knew that their increased power had started to unfold days before. It was now just a few minutes before their full seven times twenty-four hours would run out. Dumbledore checked the watch by which he had timed the days and just as he was about to move to the bed to wake them the boys sat up and turned to each other.   
  
"Remus, my love..." Sirius whispered.  
  
"Siri... I love you!" Remus said and crawled onto Sirius' lap.  
  
He took the scarf off and embraced Sirius tightly, kissing him deeply. Sirius' arms closed around his mate's shoulder.  
  
"Have you felt that? It went through me like a whiplash!" Sirius said.  
  
"Yeah, it woke me up. And I had a whole rush of images running through my head!"  
  
"Me too! They looked like memories of your family."  
  
Remus' eyes widened.  
  
"Then it was what happened to you at your home what I saw? Oh goddess, Sirius! That was all terrifying! What they did to you..."  
  
Sirius' face darkened. He hated it that Remus knew about that.  
  
"Forget about that, love! It's not important. The only important thing is that I'm free now and that I'm with you! I love you!"  
  
"I love you, too, so much, Siri! It's just so sad what happened to you."  
  
"It's in the past, Remus. I will have to leave it there and possibly forget it."  
  
"Yes, I suppose you're right about that. Do you think our time is up soon?"  
  
Dumbledore took that as his opportunity to knock and tell them:  
  
"Yes, I believe that the time is up and you have succeeded in your mating! You can get up and return to your house now."  
  
Remus looked up.   
  
"That's nice. Though we'll have to face James and Peter now."  
  
"They will be glad to have you back, believe me, Mr. Lupin. Now get dressed and join me in my office, we will still have to talk about a few things."  
  
"Okay, we'll be there in a few minutes."  
  
Dumbledore left and the boys looked for their clothes and got dressed. They walked up the stairs again and entered the headmaster's office. And they were surprised to find Richard and Venetia there who pulled them both into their arms.  
  
"This is such a wonderful moment, boys! We were so afraid Remus would stay alone, you don't know how happy we are for you two!" Venetia said.  
  
"Mum! What are you doing here?"  
  
"We want to be the first to congratulate you! After all, what you just did is a form of getting married."  
  
"Oh. We completely forgot about that part," Remus mumbled.  
  
"They have taken notice of your new status at the Registry, Remus. I'm afraid that my responsibility for you has now been placed into Sirius' hands. All spouses of werewolves are regarded as something akin to a guardian if they're not werewolves. You will both have to turn up there in the next two weeks to sign the respective papers."  
  
Remus' face darkened. He had known that as long as his parents lived they would be responsible for him, but that their responsibility would now be in Sirius' hands was a bit unnerving. Sirius looked at his father-in-law with shock written in his blue eyes.  
  
"You mean, I'm not only Remus' husband, I'm also his guardian? He's of age! Why a guardian?"  
  
Remus pulled lightly on Sirius' sleeve to get his attention.  
  
"Werewolves don't get full maturity, Sirius. If there are no spouses or parents then it's a willing sibling or other relative and if there's no relatives it's an appointed guardian among the Support Unit's staff..." he explained.  
  
"But that's outrageous! Honestly!"  
  
"I know. But right now there isn't too much we can do about it, Sirius, the Ministry is in a pretty ugly state because of this Voldemort person and his followers. Did you know that they call themselves 'Death Eaters'? He's found a fairly large group of supporters all through the wizarding world. We are still looking for a sign to possibly recognise them. But whatever they're up to they are also trying to get the Dark Creatures on their side and it seems they've had a certain amount of success with some werewolves by promising them a cure. That doesn't prepare a very good ground for more liberal werewolf laws," Richard explained.  
  
"And that leads us straight to one of my motivations of seeing the two of you mated. Believe me that it is not the top reason, because in the first place I wanted to see the two of you in a happy and hopefully very long lasting relationship. But this procedure has strengthened your power. We will begin with an enhanced training for you two in the next weeks. You will be going through more advanced Transfiguration, Defence, Charms and Potions training than any of your friends. You will receive extra Auror training by two or three Aurors from the Ministry and you will learn to cast more advanced curses. I will personally work with you. We need to get you ready to help in the fight against Lord Voldemort, as he calls himself. Let me tell you that behind this Lord Voldemort is a former student of Hogwarts, who, unfortunately is a direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin and takes Slytherin's preference of pure-blooded wizards and witches to the extreme, and his plans include killing every Muggle-born witch and wizard as well as all half-bloods and if he can get rid of all the Muggles he will do that, too. And his hobby seems to be to find a way to bypass death and become immortal," Dumbledore continued.  
  
Sirius and Remus stared at him open-mouthed and terrified. Both gulped and turned to look at Richard and Venetia, who looked grim and hardly less terrified.  
  
"I didn't know it was quite that bad," Richard admitted.  
  
"I am afraid it is. - Now, I am not forcing this on you two, but you would certainly become an asset to our side and would do a lot of good to win what this will become in the next two or three years, a full war. But would you be willing to undergo this training?"  
  
Sirius and Remus looked at each other for a moment and took each others' hands, then Remus nodded.  
  
"Yes sir, we would. We noticed that we will need the training to control all that magic that's grown in us anyway. And there's something I need to tell you, sir..." Sirius replied.  
  
"I knew I could count on you. Thank you very much. What is it that you need to tell me?"  
  
Sirius grinned and transformed into the dog. As usual, Remus put his hand on Padfoot's head and petted him, brushing the shaggy hair from his eyes. It wasn't such a shock for Richard and Venetia anymore, but McGonagall, who was in the room as well, gasped audibly. Dumbledore's eyes showed the famous twinkle. He was quite surprised, but he didn't show it. Minerva recovered quickly and scolded Sirius:  
  
"Sirius Black! Are you aware of how dangerous that is? It's a miracle you got this right!"  
  
Padfoot just sat and tilted his head slightly, panted, wagged his tail and looked at them with those incredibly big and moist pale blue grey eyes. And he basically behaved fully like the dog he was. Not even Minerva was able to withstand that doggy glance and Remus had to laugh as he watched her face turning from looking at the dog sternly to being touched. Sirius had won her over as he always did. Her best Transfigurations student in the year, how could she be mad at him for a long time. He barked and then turned back.   
  
"Sorry, Professors, we just had to do this..."  
  
"We?" asked Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"James, Peter and I. We just couldn't watch Remus suffer in that shack all alone! So we went about to find something to help him."  
  
"When did you start on that transformation?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"Right after we figured out he was a werewolf. Took us a while to find out that werewolves would only eat other animals, but were otherwise no danger to them. Then we had to find out how to become Animagi, that took longer."  
  
"Now I know! Irma Pince told us that those three spent an incredibly long time at the library two years ago, Albus. And she was wondering what you were studying..." Minerva said.  
  
"Well, at night we went there to find the books we needed, noted them down and during the day we went to study them. We copied all we needed to know down and worked on it whenever we knew Remus was somewhere else than we were," Sirius told them proudly.  
  
"So you didn't know they were doing this, Remus?" Venetia asked.  
  
Remus shook his head.  
  
"No, it was a complete surprise when they finally showed me."  
  
"And when did you succeed?"  
  
"Christmas break fifth year," Sirius replied.  
  
He heard gasps from everyone in the room.   
  
"You are certainly not registered anywhere, are you?" Dumbledore wanted to know.  
  
"No, of course not. We thought if we turned up at the Ministry to register they would not be commending us for doing this in secret..." Sirius admitted.  
  
"I suppose they would not. But I have to say I am pretty glad about it right now. Do not worry about the Ministry, not registering as an Animagus is illegal, but not a really great offence, I would expect there are a couple more unregistered Animagi than registered ones. And for our purpose it would certainly be a lot better if not too many people knew about your ability. Who knows besides we here?"  
  
"Only Madam Pomfrey. We told her when we came back after the summer. We thought it would be good if she knew that we stayed with Remus during his transformations."  
  
Minerva gasped again. Only now did she think of that. But she looked at Sirius fondly and said:  
  
"That is friendship as everyone would like to have it..."   
  
Sirius smiled. He took Remus' hand again. Then he asked:  
  
"When's the next Hogsmeade weekend, Professor?"  
  
"The coming Saturday in two weeks."  
  
"Good. I think, Remus and I need rings..."  
  
Richard and Venetia shared an amused glance with Minerva. Venetia looked at Remus and what she saw in his face was pure bliss. Her son had not been this happy since that blasted bite, but if he now found some perks in being a werewolf then she would be very glad for him. She pulled him close and felt him snuggling to her.   
  
"You seem to be so happy now, love," she said.  
  
"I am, mum. The future doesn't look quite so dark now."  
  
She hugged him again.  
  
"Well, there is not much else that I can tell you right now. Oh, one last question, Sirius. What are the Animagus-forms of Messrs Potter and Pettigrew?"  
  
"James is a stag and Peter is a rat."  
  
"A rat, hm? Wonderful. I think I will have special jobs for a person with such an ability. But for now, off you go, back to your common room, it is already after curfew. Here is the note that will get you off if anyone meets you."  
  
Dumbledore gave Remus a small slip of parchment and the two said goodbye to Richard and Venetia. Both hugged them tightly and said:  
  
"And if you want to come home during the Easter break we'll hold a nice little celebration for your mating."  
  
Remus thanked them and pulled Sirius out of the room. They walked back through the corridors and were promptly accosted by Filch who didn't like their slip of parchment at all that allowed them to go back to their house unharmed. When he was gone, Sirius turned and pushed out his tongue at the despised care-taker. Remus pulled him on and they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady who sleepily asked for the password.   
  
"Phoenix tears," Remus replied.  
  
The door swung forward and they entered the common room. Since it was just after eleven there were only a few students left, most of them sixth and seventh years. Lily and her friends were studying at one of the tables, James and Peter sat close to the fireplace. They turned their heads to see who came in so late and James jumped up, shouting:  
  
"Where the hell have you been? We've been sick with worry! No one wanted to tell us anything at all!"  
  
"Hi Jamie, good to see you, too," Sirius replied, somewhat sarcastically.   
  
Dari and Peter stood up and came closer, too, Lily looked curious but wouldn't let it show too much by coming after her friend.  
  
"Can we sit down, please?" Sirius took the initiative.  
  
He pulled Remus over to one of the squashy sofas, sat down and Remus sat down in his lap. They were still so used to having skin contact that they could barely stand it not touching the other yet. When the others had sat down as well, Sirius started:  
  
"It all started during the Christmas break, when Dumbledore sent us Fawkes with a message and we went to see him. That was just before you two came to the Lupins."  
  
Then all of a sudden, Remus stopped him and looked around. None of the younger students were in the room and he felt uncomfortable about letting six other students know about his condition, but he knew them all well and trusted them to keep his secret within Gryffindor tower. He looked up at them and said:  
  
"Before we go on I have to confess something to you guys. But you have to promise not to tell anyone outside of this room and if you are uncomfortable with it once you know I will have to ask Professor Dumbledore to memory charm you..."  
  
"I think, I know anyway, Remus," Marjorie, a seventh year girl said.  
  
"You do?" he asked with round eyes.  
  
"Yes. You are a werewolf, aren't you?" she asked.  
  
There were gasps from two seventh year boys behind her, but Lily looked just as unfazed and Dari knew already. Remus nodded.  
  
"Well, I've suspected for a long time. It's not your fault, Remus, and you should not be ashamed of it. Though I do understand why you're not advertising it. So what happened?" Marjorie asked softly.  
  
Remus' eyes moistened and he looked at her from Sirius' shoulder, really thankful for her pragmatism. Sirius continued now:  
  
"Well, apparently the myth about werewolves mating for life isn't just a myth only."  
  
"What! So it's true that the first person a werewolf sleeps with will be the life-bonded mate?" Dari asked.  
  
"Not quite. It's a bit more than that. But yes, it has to do with sex. Both partners have to still be virgins. And if they are willing to undergo the rites then they will be bonded for life. It's more demanding than just having sex for the first time though."  
  
"Do you mean to tell us that you two underwent some archaic rites to become bonded for life?" Lily asked from behind.  
  
She was now too curious to stay away.  
  
"Yes, that about sums it up. And yes, we're bond-mates now," Remus replied.  
  
"Wow... and what did you have to do?"  
  
"We had to spend exactly seven full days and nights together from the moment we made love for the first time and then keep skin contact, and that means skin on skin, not through fabric for the entire seven days. We were not allowed to let go even for a second. And it included quite a lot more lovemaking," Sirius replied with a grin while Remus blushed crimson.  
  
Sirius caressed him over the back and went on explaining:  
  
"The good thing about it is that we are now legally married! The bond between us can only be broken by the death of one of us. And there's been an immense increase in our magical power! It seems that before the days they passed the first laws against werewolves there were quite a lot of couples like that. It doesn't matter if the werewolf bonds with another werewolf or a human or if the partner is the same or the other gender. They go through the rites and become bonded. Now most werewolves that are created are adults, most of them have already had partners, so they're out of the run, but Dumbledore noticed we were together, asked us whether we had already gone all the way and when we said we didn't he gave us this book in which the rite was described. We had time through the break to think about it and when he called us up to his office we thought we'd just say that we wanted to go through the rite. But he had already prepared these rooms in his tower for us and we went right through it..."  
  
"Wow," was all the others knew to say.  
  
"It was a huge surprise for us that he wanted us to go through right away," Remus said.  
  
"I can imagine."  
  
"And then we started to feel how our magic exploded! It was all amazing. Almost put making love in the shadow!" Sirius said.  
  
"So you're much more powerful now?" Marjorie asked.  
  
"Yes! At one point both of us had left our wands out of reach, so we just summoned them wandlessly and they didn't only come flying, we were almost speared by them! That's where we noticed that we will have to learn to control all that magic. I can imagine that this is the main reason why such couples vanished after the werewolf code of conduct came into being, because no one at the Ministry was very interested in having such powerful werewolves around. There hasn't been a life-bonded werewolf for about four hundred and fifty years."  
  
"Is it illegal?" Peter asked.  
  
"No, it's not. There are holes in the law. It's like a marriage rite and you know that werewolves are allowed to marry, even though each marriage is not only registered in the normal family registry, but also at the Werewolf Registry. I mean, there's some who are bitten when they are already married. You can't possibly force them to get a divorce because of this. Especially not if the partner is willing to stand by the infected partner," Remus explained.  
  
"Oh, that's good then. So now you're actually married? That's cute!" Dari exclaimed.  
  
"Yes, we are. And we'll have something to do come next weekend, I want us to wear rings," Sirius said.  
  
"That's so sweet!" Dari said.  
  
"Thanks, Dari! You're a real good friend, you know? You guys are all great, because none of you have put us down for being together. That gives us a real cosy feeling in our stomachs!" Sirius said.  
  
"Well, if you're together you won't hit on any of us, that's fine with me," Ryan, one of the seventh year boys, replied with a grin.  
  
"I don't even know if I'm really gay," Remus said, "I just knew it was Sirius for years. No one else. So maybe I'm not homo- but simply Sirius-sexual."  
  
Everyone in the room laughed and Remus grinned shyly. He found all that attention more than embarrassing, but since the others were okay with it he thawed a bit. Even Lily thought they were a cute couple. They finally went up the stairs to their dormitories. Once the door was closed safely behind them, Remus turned to James and Peter.  
  
"I'm afraid, Sirius and I outed you to Dumbledore and McGonagall, they know about your Animagus forms now," he said.  
  
"Oh. How did they take it?"  
  
"Dumbledore wants us to stay unregistered for the time being. He talked a lot about this Lord Voldemort who's so intent on getting all Muggle-borns and Muggles killed. He says we'd be great assets in the fight against them if we didn't let everyone know about it. And even though I think McGonagall wasn't too happy about us staying illegal, she agreed. Dumbledore thinks that your rat form would be very helpful indeed, Peter," Sirius said.  
  
"Oh, really? I want to help if I can..." Peter said modestly.  
  
"You will be able to help greatly. You know how many times you already got out of scrapes last year because you could hide out as a tiny rat! James and Sirius are much too big to have a chance to get out of something as easily as you can. I could imagine he'd want you to hide and gather information..." Remus explained.  
  
"Wow. That would be great!"   
  
"But let's go to bed, we have to be back in class tomorrow morning and it's late already," Sirius said and went off in the direction of Remus' bed.   
  
"Don't forget silencing charms, if you intend to do your marital duties..." James teased.   
  
Remus just waved his hand. They undressed and went to sleep. It seemed impossible for them to sleep far apart now and he had already got used to snuggling up to Sirius back to front. And immediately he felt Sirius' arm around him upon which Remus was asleep in a moment.  
  
They hadn't missed too much in this first week back after the holidays. But they still had to catch up, which even not so serious Sirius did quite determinedly. The information he had received from Dumbledore about the rise of the Dark Lord had troubled him deeply. He had fled his home for a good part because he would have nothing to do with Voldemort, if he now got a chance to do some good damage in this war he was determined to take it. And if all he could help now was by studying more he would do just that as well. 


	7. 07 Spring Term

Title: Baby Boom! 7/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**7. Spring Term**  
  
But amidst all that studying there was still the boys' blossoming love, which they enjoyed quite openly. The next Hogsmeade weekend came and the sixth and seventh years were allowed out a bit longer than the rest. Sirius had convinced James and Peter it would be lovely if they got dates to go to Hogsmeade, so they wouldn't just brood over Remus' and his relationship, but enjoy some happiness of their own. Remus had even gone so far as to chat up a cute Hufflepuff fifth year girl he knew Peter had a crush on, because Peter was too shy. He found out that the girl wouldn't mind going out with Peter. She must have been as shy as Peter was, so with a little help from their friends Peter got the girl. Once together the two seemed very happy. James of course was still after Lily, but she still mostly turned up her pretty nose. Until one day in the common room James exploded:  
  
"You know, Lily, in some ways you're as conceited as you claim me to be! You've just got that image of me in your head and you won't let go, because you're as stubborn as a mule! Or is it that you find pleasure in seeing me crawling in the dirt in front of you? Sooner or later I'll quit, you know!"  
  
With that he stormed off to the dormitory and Dari said:  
  
"He's not all wrong about that, Lily, you know."  
  
Lily shot her an evil glance and stalked off to her own dormitory. Sirius and Remus looked at Dari and they all shrugged.   
  
Dari, being the good friend she was, went after Lily and talked to her some more.  
  
"Lily, I know you hate James' guts sometimes, but I also know you don't hate James. He's not just trying to get in your pants, he's in love with you. Hasn't he shown you dozens of times this year? What about all the flowers and the cards? Have you ever seen him with another girl? He's really given you a thoughtful gift for Christmas. He's not been as evil to Snape as he used to be. You should really award him for that restraint, because Snivellus is as evil as he always was. It must have cost James a lot not to hex him half the time Snape provoked him."  
  
This was sound reasoning and Lily knew it. She looked at Dari and said:  
  
"I can't just give in, Dari..."  
  
"Why not? There's a point where you just have to concede. You can always go back on your decision if he takes up hexing people again just because he can. I don't think he will, Lily, because I think he's growing up."  
  
On the other side of the tower Remus talked with James.  
  
"I know that you were right to explode, James, but don't give up just yet. I think she shows signs of giving in..."  
  
"I thought so, too, but that was just a moment I couldn't take any more. What else can I do but show her I've grown up? I love her! There are days I really don't know just why I love her, but I know I do. It's not just that I'm trying to get her and then drop her."  
  
"I know. But if you see her again at dinner go to her and apologise for exploding and ask her out once more. You didn't mind the rejections so far, so what's one more if you're convinced she's the one."  
  
James sighed deeply. Then he nodded and said:  
  
"You're right. That would be a good tactic."  
  
And so in the same evening James passed Lily before going down to the Great Hall for dinner and said softly:  
  
"I'm sorry for exploding like that, Lily. Can you forgive me?"  
  
She looked him in the eyes and said:  
  
"Yeah, I guess I was a bit very harsh. I'm sorry, too."  
  
"So would you go to Hogsmeade with me this Saturday?"  
  
She sighed.  
  
"Oh well, yes, if that's what it takes to get some peace..."  
  
James couldn't hide his grin as he joined the other Marauders at the dinner table. They watched him throwing dreamy glances over at Lily, who sat a few seats away on the other side of the table with Dari and two other girls. Dari looked over to him and gave him a smile and a thumbs up sign. He turned back to his food. All was not lost yet.  
  
"She said yes..." he remarked casually.  
  
"She said yes? To go to Hogsmeade with you? That's great, mate!" Sirius said and beamed.  
  
James nodded happily.   
  
"So what are we going to do then? Just hang around?" he asked.  
  
Remus rolled his eyes.  
  
"Take her for a long walk! Listen to her for a while and find common grounds. You're not dumb, James, but sometimes you're dense, you know! If you're entirely uninterested in what she's interested in she'll not be impressed. I don't mean that you've got to show interest in every bit, but there must be some subjects you're both getting along."  
  
"Thanks for that advice, mate," James said glumly.  
  
Remus just grinned. He felt Sirius' hand on his thigh and sighed, too, but happily. They would be off looking for rings. Then on Monday they were due for the visit at the Ministry to sign their papers. He didn't feel all that comfortable that Sirius was now officially his guardian, but he shoved it away knowing that the true leader in their relationship was himself.   
  
The Hogsmeade weekend dawned with a crispy cold but clear January morning. The students walked down to the village in thick throngs or in couples. Many of the older students used these weekends to go out with their girlfriends or boyfriends. The Marauders, Lily and Sabina, Peter's new girlfriend walked together, but separated soon after reaching Hogsmeade. Sirius took off with Remus to the jeweller's shop. They found it on the main road, a quaint little house all covered with snow and a small window showing off some lovely jewellery. They went inside and were met by the owner of the shop. When they asked to see wedding rings he looked at them slightly reproachful, but he didn't want to lose their business so he said nothing. They looked over the selection and finally decided on a pair of lovely red gold rings containing one single tiny ruby. The rings were immediately fitted to their fingers and they had their names and the date of their mating engraved. Sirius gave the jeweller his Gringotts vault number and after a quick check with the bank they could leave the shop, both wearing their new rings. They held hands as they walked through the village to Honeyduke's, where they bought a selection of sweets to last them until the next Hogsmeade weekend. Sirius added some extra chocolate for Remus to his pile.   
  
Some of their classmates whom they met on the streets and in the shops noticed their new rings. Most commented in a friendly way. Sirius and Remus had not kept their relationship a secret, so the whole school knew about them being together. But of course there were still taunts about it, mostly from Slytherins.   
  
A few metres before the entrance of the Three Broomsticks where they wanted to meet up with their friends they were accosted by some of the Slytherins. Bellatrix Black, Rodolphus and Rabastan Lestrange, Sirius's brother Regulus were among them, Snape, Wilkes and Avery were behind them. There were a lot of people on the road, but even when Sirius and Remus were bound into a circle none of the adults or other students intervened. The gang had a bad name at Hogsmeade already, they were known to most of the salesmen and the people usually avoided having anything to do with them. Most of them were also banned from the Three Broomsticks.   
  
"Hey, look who we have here... two little poofs out on a walk. Aren't they just cute and poncy?" Rodolphus Lestrange asked in a sing-sang voice.  
  
"Why, if it isn't my brave little cousin," Bellatrix went on.  
  
"Oh, and just look! They're wearing rings, isn't it sweeeet?" Regulus cooed.   
  
"And? What's it to you?" Sirius asked.  
  
Neither he nor Remus showed much respect and when some of the Slytherins pulled out their wands to start hexing them, Sirius and Remus only exchanged a glance and cried, at the same time, without even pulling their own wands.  
  
"Expelliarmus!"  
  
The power of their spell didn't only make the Slytherin's wands fly, but most of the other peoples' around as well. And the people. Many around the two found themselves on the ground while Sirius and Remus just shrugged and left to the pub.   
  
"What the heck was that?" Avery asked Rodolphus Lestrange.  
  
"No idea. But something's fishy. I'll find out. This kind of power would be of interest for the Dark Lord, that much is sure."  
  
Remus and Sirius had found an empty table in the meantime and Remus went to get the drinks. He noticed the two of the group of Slytherins who were still allowed in the pub coming in. Regulus and Rabastan watched him taking his drinks over to Sirius. Then he got up and went straight to the two fourth years to tell them off:  
  
"As a prefect I'm warning you not to cause any more trouble or I shall have to not only take points from Slytherin but hand out detentions. Is that clear?"  
  
His tone made it clear that he was no push-over. Rabastan still thought another taunt was called for and replied:  
  
"You can't throw me out of here. Besides you're nothing but a weak little homo..."  
  
"I may be gay but that doesn't make me weak, Rabastan. You'd better back down while you can still do it without pain. We only disarmed you out there, but believe me, I could do much worse to you. Now leave or I'll have Madam Rosmerta get you out."  
  
Regulus didn't want to push it any further and pulled his classmate out of the pub. Remus returned to the table and sat down on the bench next to Sirius. They were soon joined there by Peter and Sabina.  
  
"Hey, what went on outside? We've heard lots of talking about two guys who didn't use their wands to disarm about two dozen people around them. Could only have been you two, eh?" Peter asked.  
  
"Bellatrix's gang thought they had a chance getting at us surrounding us out on the street. We just showed them that they were slightly wrong," Remus said.  
  
"Cool! But I bet their curiosity has been stirred now."  
  
"I'm afraid so. But I know that Dumbledore wants them to know, and this was a natural opportunity. I'm sure they'll report it to their homes and from there it will go to Voldemort," Sirius said.  
  
"Why would Dumbledore want them to know?" Sabina asked.  
  
"Can't talk about that here. It's a part of a scheme he has," Remus said.  
  
"That contains you two as part of it? Ouch. Rather you than I! This You-Know-Who guy scares me to death."  
  
"Voldemort, Sabina. I really don't like that new fashion of the Daily Prophet of referring to him as You-Know-Who. It's ridiculous. Voldemort's real name is Tom Riddle," Remus said.  
  
Sabina looked at him with admiration.  
  
"Well, if I had the power to disarm two dozen people without so much as lifting my wand I'd not be afraid either," she said.  
  
"We're just as afraid of him as you are, Sabina. But Professor Dumbledore says fear of the name only increases the fear of the thing itself and that's precisely what Voldemort wants. He wants us all in fear so he can go ahead and massacre everyone who doesn't fit into his spectrum of tolerated people," Remus told her.  
  
To everyone's surprise Peter piped up and put an arm around his girlfriend.  
  
"I think, Remus is right, Sabina. We have to remember that this is only a man and not some kind of an Über-person, he can only cook with water just like everyone else."  
  
"Bravo, Wormtail, that's the spirit!" Sirius applauded his friend.  
  
"It's just - they're killing so many people. And so many others have just vanished," Sabina said shyly.  
  
"You're right. And apart from Dumbledore no one really does anything against it. They just stand there not knowing what to do it seems. The Minister had to be CONVINCED by at least four heads of departments to finally get into gear. My dad has stocked up on Auror training. He also started to offer additional defence training for everyone who is interested in self-defence," Remus said.  
  
James and Lily joined them a few minutes later. They had heard about the incident, too, and wanted to hear all about it. Half the school passed by their table in the course of the afternoon to hear all about that incident on the street. By the time they returned to Hogwarts and went to the Great Hall for dinner it was all over the school and even all the teachers had already heard about it. One of the passers-by who had been caught in the spell had collected his wand and practically ran to the school to talk with Dumbledore. He promptly called them to his office after dinner.  
  
They sat down in front of his desk and Remus apologised:  
  
"I'm sorry, sir. We didn't want to hex them or fight with them, but we would have had to, they were seven and we were in the middle of them. No one seemed to want to interfere, so we decided to disarm them..."  
  
"That is quite alright, my boy. In fact I am convinced it will be reported to Voldemort. Sooner or later he will seek you out. What I want to do is to talk about protection for the two of you for when you are not at Hogwarts. We need to intensify your training. It seems that casting that spell has increased your individual power. We will test certain spells and their strength under these conditions. If the two of you are in harmony you will achieve a great number of things."  
  
Dumbledore took the boys to a room where they usually trained and had them levitate very heavy objects. They managed alone, but when they tried the spell together even the heaviest stone flew to the ceiling. And when they focused their magic with a wand they almost broke the ceiling. So they whispered the spell and still levitated a big block.  
  
"Quite amazing. Try an Incendio spell on this large wooden block in the grate there..."   
  
They pointed their wands and cast the spell. The log burned up immediately. Dumbledore conjured a larger log, and then yet a larger one, and then one that barely fit inside of the fireplace, but all of them were gone within minutes of the two boys casting their spells together.   
  
"I see that we shall have to take this to another part of the castle. There is too much wood in here. The more destructive part of your training will be held in the dungeons, but a good bit away from the Slytherin common room, do not worry. There are parts of this castle that no one knows but me and the old headmistresses and headmasters. Now try a Reducto curse on this block of stone!"  
  
Dumbledore conjured a huge block of stone and Sirius and Remus had a go at it, wandless first, which cut the stone in half, then with their wands, first one half and then the other. They reduced the two slabs to dust.   
  
"Amazing. That will be all for today, boys, you have spent a considerable amount of energy tonight. Go and get some rest. By the way - I commend you for not choosing to hex the Slytherin students. It's always better to find a solution like disarming an opponent."  
  
"Thank you, Professor," the boys chorused, then they left the office to return to their house.   
  
Dumbledore stayed back, looked down on the dust from the stones and repeated several times: "Remarkable. They are truly remarkable."  
  
If Dumbledore had promised to intensify the training he hadn't promised too much. The boys worked with him and Flitwick, then there were two Aurors who overlooked their defensive and even some offensive spell-casting, they learned more in Potions than they liked and McGonagall and Dumbledore both worked them in Transfiguration. They also took some time off to learn some basic healing magic from Madam Pomfrey, who was only too pleased to teach them.   
  
But before all that they had to go to the Ministry. They were allowed to floo from the Headmaster's office directly to the Ministry. They reported to the Werewolf Registry where some of the staff looked down on Sirius for getting involved so intimately with a werewolf, but he remained calm. He knew there would be more of that contempt from many people. He had stamped himself a bit of an outcast, too, when he got mated with his Remus, but as long as they had their friends and their family they didn't really feel bad. There were a bunch of papers to be signed and that done they were free to return to Hogwarts. As Remus was still one school year away from finishing his education his new married status as well as his condition would not be turned public just yet.   
  
"Did everything pass alright?" Dumbledore asked them upon their return.  
  
"Without a hitch. I'm quite sure they don't even realise that there's one top powerful werewolf walking all over Hogwarts," Sirius grinned.  
  
"Good. Though sooner or later it will come up, but I hope we can get you through Hogwarts before that is the case. Voldemort won't know that you are a werewolf, but that you are powerful, the Werewolf Registry will know you are a werewolf, but not that you are powerful. I think I like the beauty of that."  
  
"I'm not so sure I like it myself. I feel a bit manipulated in all of that," Remus sighed.  
  
"I am trying not to manipulate you, but I will not hold back that I am very interested in having you in my ranks, Remus. But foremost let me assure you that I am especially fond of you. You have grown from a shy little boy to a very self-confident one! We would not have chosen you for prefect if we did not think you were very able to do it."  
  
Remus and Sirius returned to Gryffindor tower and spent the rest of the afternoon behind closed curtains and silencing charms making love. Since starting out they had discovered many things they liked doing. Remus loved it when he could lay on his side, Sirius behind him and Sirius liked it most on his back, Remus taking him from the front. And in the middle were many shades of grey which they all enjoyed. But they usually ended up with Remus' favourite position at the end, just before falling asleep. Remus wiggled his hindquarters a little to get the most comfortable snug position in Sirius' crotch and Sirius pulled him closer to make sure that his cock found a nice tight bed between Remus' legs. Sirius usually pushed it right behind his mate's testicles.  
  
They woke up in the middle of the night. The dormitory was quiet apart from Peter's soft snoring. Sirius kissed Remus and asked:  
  
"Hungry?"  
  
"Quite. Kitchen raid?"  
  
"Yep!"  
  
They opened the curtains, only to find a plate of food for each of them, kept warm by a charm. Both looked fondly over to James, sending a silent thank you for sparing them the long walk down to the kitchen. They gobbled up their food, put the plates back on the bedside table and pulled the curtains close again.  
  
"That was even better, saved us from having to go all the way down..." Remus remarked.  
  
"...let alone coming all the way up again," Sirius added, snuggling closer to his husband. 


	8. 08 One Year later

Title: Baby Boom! 8/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**8. One Year later**  
  
In the course of the past year, Sirius and Remus had both noticed a few minor changes in their bodies. Sirius' chest hair vanished. The hair on his arms was practically gone. And both their nipples had changed form, they were now looking slightly puckered, had become much larger and had a very dark surrounding. They had also greatly gained in sensitivity.  
  
They celebrated their first anniversary a few days after the actual event with a dinner for two at Hogsmeade. Both were just as deeply in love with each other as they had been at the start. They both agreed that their feelings for each other had only intensified over the past year. Coming back from their evening out they went straight to their dorm and closed the curtains of Remus' bed for a night of intensive love-making.  
  
For a year they had been trained up in many things that went far beyond the Hogwarts education. Times had gone from bad to worse and the Hogwarts staff had become Secret Keepers for many a household of endangered students. Much to the Death Eaters' dismay there were now many people they couldn't find anymore and this did nothing to lift Voldemort's moods. For a while he concentrated his attacks on the Muggles, but now he was making another effort to find those super-powerful young wizards again, of whom he had heard talking more than once.   
  
But Remus and Sirius were among those who were covered by the Fidelius charm. For the time being their training was a bit less intensive, so they could work more for the preparation for their NEWTS. Both were doing well in their studies. Both were now able to pull considerable magical stunts, alone and even more so together. They knew they were one of Voldemort's prime targets and that they would have to face him sooner or later.   
  
Dumbledore waited. He had withheld one piece of information from the two young men, one important piece of information. The mating meant a subtle change in the build of their bodies. To the outside only the small change of their nipples was a sign of what developed on the inside. The vanishing of their body hair would have been another, but it was so slow they had hardly noticed. Now, one year after their mating their bodies were ready for the next step, of which Dumbledore had not whispered anything to anyone. He waited. Sooner or later it would happen. Sooner or later Poppy would come and inform him of...  
  
"Albus, may I have a word with you?"   
  
It was shortly before Easter and it was Poppy who called him through the fire.  
  
"Yes, Poppy, of course. Should I come down to your office?"  
  
"That would be most kind."  
  
He got there only minutes later, expecting to hear what he had been waiting for. She looked very puzzled when she told him:  
  
"Remus has not transformed last night. He went almost crazy, thought that something was wrong with him and it distressed him almost more than his transformations."  
  
Dumbledore drew a long breath. Remus it was. And it meant he would not transform for a while.  
  
"I believe he will not transform for a while. You should apply a pregnancy test on him, Poppy."  
  
"A WHAT? Albus, you ARE aware that Remus Lupin is a male, aren't you?"  
  
"Yes, I am. Remus Lupin is also a life-bonded male werewolf. One consequence of werewolves who are life-bonded is a subtle change inside of their body. Male partners develop ovaries, tubes and an uterus. The same probably happened to Sirius. It is usually finished a year after their bonding."  
  
Poppy was floored! She thought she had seen a slight change in Remus' nipples.  
  
"Oh! And you think that a pregnancy suppresses his transformations until the baby is born?"  
  
"Yes. No baby would survive his transformations, not even in the early stages."  
  
"I would think not. Nature is something very strange sometimes and when magic comes into play it can become even more astonishing. I'll conduct that test immediately, he's still there. Sirius is with him."  
  
"They really love each other, do they not?"  
  
"Absolutely. Sirius is there for Remus all the way! Do you want to wait here for the result?"  
  
"I cannot deny that I am very curious, Poppy. I shall wait."  
  
Albus sat down, Poppy prepared the test potion and took it over to the young men. Sirius looked up.  
  
"Do you know what happened, Madam Pomfrey? I don't dare hoping that he's cured just like that..."  
  
"No, I don't think he is. Remus, could you please go and put some urine into this beaker? We'll have to make a little test."  
  
Remus looked up, blushed, but took the beaker and vanished to the loo. He came back and Poppy put a small amount into the test fluid, the rest she banished back to the toilet.   
  
"Five minutes and we will know what is going on, boys," she said with a smile.  
  
They were five long minutes. Sirius and Remus waited, spent their time caressing each other and kissing and when the little sound came that ended the time they all looked to the vial containing the test. It had turned from yellow to blue.  
  
"Well, that's it. Remus, brace yourself, I have some really important news for you."  
  
He looked at her very anxiously.  
  
"I'm not going to die in the next month, am I?" he asked.  
  
"No, that you certainly won't. But you did not transform because there's something in your belly who would have died. You are going to have a baby."  
  
"What? But... but I'm a guy! How can I have a baby in there?"  
  
"That's what I thought, but Professor Dumbledore explained to me that all mated werewolves develop the necessary female body parts within a year after their mating. He said that you probably have these, too, Sirius. If you wish I can show it to you..."  
  
"You can make that visible?" Sirius asked, fascinated, before he really realised that he was concerned, too. And that his husband was expecting a baby.  
  
"Yes, I can."  
  
Poppy cast a spell that made Sirius practically see-through. Both he and Remus looked at the sight in awe. Poppy looked at him, too and covered her mouth with her hand.  
  
"Sirius, go and give me a sample of your urine, too, please."  
  
"What? You're not telling me I am pregnant, too!" he grinned.  
  
She just summoned a clean beaker and pointed to the toilet. Sirius vanished and she went back to her office to prepare another test.  
  
"Is he?" Albus asked in a low voice.  
  
"Yes, he is, just fresh though. Sirius probably is, too! How could you not tell them about this, Albus? They could have prevented a pregnancy!"  
  
"And they would have. But I actually did not want that. I will be subject to their wrath, but once their babies will be born they will reach the full potential of their power. And then - woe to Voldemort. We need them to get rid of this creature once they are through school. We will go down over short or long without their power, Poppy. I am not as strong as I used to be. Until then we shall cuddle them - and their babies - and I shall teach them as much as I can. And hopefully they will be able to enjoy a long and happy life as a family after that."  
  
Poppy sighed and couldn't help herself, she glared at him.  
  
"Always using people like chess pieces. Shame on you, Albus. I don't think that was a very nice move. But I suppose we have to live with your fait-accompli."  
  
She went out of her office and put a few drops of Sirius' urine into the test. Another five minutes wait. Sirius stroked over Remus' belly tenderly. He kissed his husband and held him close.  
  
"We'll get through this, love. It's not like I expected to ever have a child, let alone two of them, and if I had known we'd be fully functional men AND women we could have done something to prevent this. But we'll live with it, don't you think?"  
  
Remus nodded.  
  
"Don't know if I can get myself to study especially well while suffering from morning sickness..."  
  
"On the other hand, no transformations until the baby is born, love."  
  
Remus managed a weak smile. A few months of rest before the monthly pain would be back. Then his face darkened.  
  
"Madam Pomfrey, what do you think, will the baby be a werewolf, too?"  
  
"I don't know, Remus. But I don't think so. So far I haven't heard that this can be inherited."  
  
Sirius watched the yellow fluid. It turned blue.   
  
"Well. Now we know. Luckily you will be in the second trimester when you will have to sit your NEWTS, that will make that bit a lot easier. With your robes it might even be that no one notices it before school will be over for you. I can imagine that this will not exactly be fun for you if word gets out."  
  
Both young men shook their heads. Poppy checked them up and said:  
  
"I'll call the local medimidwife from Hogsmeade over in the next days for a better inspection. She'll be able to give you an approximate date for the birth and examine you more thoroughly. I don't see anything amiss right now. I'll send word to you when she'll be here."  
  
"Okay."  
  
"You might want to catch the Headmaster for a few words..." she called after them as they left the hospital wing.  
  
"We will!"  
  
Dumbledore took their wrath with an even temper and finally explained why he provoked this for them. He could feel that they didn't hate their pregnancies, but they of course resented not to have been informed about this bit of development and made it their own choice when to have a child. They returned to the dormitory, calling James, Peter, Dari and Lily to come with them. Once they reached their room they sat down and told their friends:  
  
"Anyone of you in the mood to become godparents?"   
  
The four friends stared at them, then at each other.  
  
"Why do you ask that?" James wanted to know.  
  
"Because Dumbledore neglected to tell us about another consequence of our mating. That both of us would become fully functional hermaphrodites. Well, there isn't any vagina yet, but everything else is there and that means we are now both pregnant. Apparently the necessary equipment to give birth will be developed with the pregnancy. That was the reason why Remus didn't transform last night," Sirius explained.  
  
While Peter and James looked at their male friends with open mouths, Dari and Lily started to hoot and congratulated the two on their pregnancies.  
  
"Of course I want to be the godmother of one of your children, Sirius!" Dari cried.  
  
"Me too! I'd love to. I take it you're not going to tell anyone else?"  
  
"No. You can let Sabina know, Peter, but nobody else. We will of course tell my parents and siblings. Not yet though..." Remus said.  
  
"Well, you could just scratch by... you may need a bit wider robes though," Lily said.  
  
"Yes, but we'll see how it goes. We'll be almost five months gone by the time we have to sit NEWTS."  
  
"Half the term. That's not too bad, really. You could have hit it worse. Like giving birth when you should sit NEWTS," Dari remarked.  
  
"I don't even want to think of it. I'm not really mad to be pregnant, but I'm really mad at Dumbledore who WANTED to let this happen. He says that now we will both reach our full potential and our magical power will increase to the maximum."  
  
"And just because he thinks you will have a go at Voldemort he risks to make you so mad that you possibly might rush to the other side?" James was speechless.  
  
"Well, we wouldn't do that, whatever happens. These people are too despicable. But it does hurt quite a bit to be regarded as a secret weapon."  
  
"We'll all be there with you - the whole way through!" Dari promised passionately.  
  
Remus and Sirius regarded her fondly.  
  
"Thanks, Dari! You're really a great friend!"  
  
"Well, that's what friends are for! You guys deserve to have people supporting you."  
  
"That's true. Dumbledore really singled you out with all that - and building you up as his most dangerous weapon. I think, Dari is right. I'll back you up fully, too!" Lily confirmed.  
  
"Make that three," James said.  
  
"Four," Peter added, "and probably five, once Sabina hears of it."  
  
"Thanks, guys! We really appreciate your loyalty!" Remus said, tears blinking in his eyes.  
  
The medimidwife showed up the next week, checked them both up and declared the babies were doing just fine and they would be born around the beginning of December. Dumbledore immediately informed the couple that they would receive rooms at Hogwarts where they could go on studying after school and prepare for the birth. They would be perfectly safe here.  
  
"Don't know if my mum is going to share that opinion if any more such stuff happens," Remus said to Sirius.   
  
They decided to write home and ask Richard and Venetia to come and see them at Hogwarts. Nothing like that had ever happened before so they turned up right the next weekend. In the Headmaster's presence the young men explained their condition to Richard and Venetia. At the end Richard started to grin and Venetia smiled.  
  
"Wow. So much for not giving us any grandchildren, Remus! So now you're going to give birth almost at the same time...?"  
  
"Mine will probably be first," Sirius said, "seems it's about a week older..."  
  
"Well, that's really cute! But you had better not let it come so far that WE have to become the parents of these two little buttons, just because you're breeding two lethal human weapons, Albus!" Venetia turned to Dumbledore while she said this.  
  
"I do hope and believe that they will enjoy a very nice family life together, Venetia."  
  
"They better!"  
  
The next few weeks of school were not quite easy for either of the pregnant young men, because they found themselves plagued with a bit of morning sickness and with raging hormones, but they managed and were even able to study. By the time exam week started they were as prepared as they could be. Their bellies had grown considerably, but only their dorm-mates, Lily, Sabina and Dari had seen them. Their breasts had started to develop slowly, too.   
  
The exams started. There were tests every day, but for Remus and Sirius the practical tests were just a bit of an exercise. They both did some of their required spells wandless and with their wands, so they got some extra points.   
  
And once the NEWTS were over it was only a matter of days until their time at Hogwarts came to an end. They returned home to the Lupins' place and discussed plans for their lives. Sirius was wealthy enough for them to afford their own house, but how long could they go with two children to be born soon without earning money on their own?   
  
"You know that you are both welcome to stay here until you have jobs of your own?" Venetia reminded them.  
  
"Dumbledore says the same of Hogwarts, but we didn't want that. Not before he has some real plans what we should do to help about Voldemort. Obviously that can't be before the babies are born. Your offer is much more welcome," Sirius said.  
  
"Good. You can help around the house and do those studies you still want to do."  
  
So they spent their summer in the garden and around the house, doing a lot of reading and regularly visited their friends or had them over at their place. Once Rupert and Rowland were both at Hogwarts it was very quiet and they enjoyed their time with Venetia and Richard. They went to see a medimidwife regularly and prepared for the birth. About a month before the babies were due both men noticed the change of their bodies which made themselves ready to give birth. Dumbledore assured them that their sexual organs would return to normal once the babies were born.   
  
"Apart from the boobs, I guess," Sirius muttered.  
  
"Well, you do want to feed your little one, don't you?" Remus asked tenderly.  
  
"Yes, I guess so..."   
  
Lily and James had both found jobs at the Ministry. Lily worked at the Department of Experimental Charms and James had been chosen as an Auror trainee. Peter had found work at a wizarding shop in Diagon Alley. Sabina still had a year at Hogwarts. Since the Lupins lived in Wales they weren't all too far away from the others who had all moved to London. Sirius was quite glad not to live in the city. He liked to go there but he had grown very accustomed to life in the country. He could always apparate to where he wanted to go anyway.   
  
Sleeping together became a bit of a difficult thing. They now had to sleep back to back, so that their bellies wouldn't get in the way. One day Venetia snuck into their room to take a picture of them sleeping this way.   
  
Finally the waiting found an end. Sirius' baby wanted out. It was the fifth of December when he realised that the slight pain he felt was the beginning of the birth. After a few hours and a fretting Remus who had to be soothed all the time the medimidwife was called in and together with Venetia she helped Sirius giving birth to a healthy baby girl who was named Vega Black-Lupin. Sirius was very exhausted, but so happy he cried when he held his little girl in his arms. She was just bundled up in a blanket and her face was still crunched up and red, but she was a lovely little girl with Remus' brown eyes and Sirius' black hair. He kissed her on the nose and looked up to his husband.   
  
"She's beautiful, Remus, don't you think?" he whispered.  
  
"Yes, Siri, she is."  
  
"And she's hungry, Sirius, let her suckle..." Venetia said softly from the other side.   
  
She helped her son-in-law who still felt quite awkward about it all. But that didn't faze the mother of seven who had all the routine needed to help him. After a few minutes Vega consumed her first meal and was then allowed to go on her papa's arms.  
  
"Hey, love! Welcome! You're one lovely little girl and it's an amazing feeling to finally meet you. You'll meet your little sibling in a few days, sweetheart."  
  
Remus held the baby tightly and then gave her back to Sirius who had been cleaned up in the meantime and was ready to go to sleep and rest up.   
  
They had barely seven days time to get used to their daughter when it was Remus' time. It took long and he had a harder time of it than Sirius, but at the end of thirty hours Remus gave birth to a healthy boy. Polaris was quite a strong child who looked like Sirius. He was thoroughly checked, but there was no evidence that he had inherited Remus' werewolf.   
  
"The next full moon will be in eight days, we can't but wait and see what happens. I don't think we'll need more than a solid ward around his cot, he's still so small," Richard said.  
  
Remus thought it would be horrible if his little boy would have to go through what he had to endure every month. He knew that in only a week he'd go through that horrible transformation again.   
  
The full moon night came up and Sirius went down into the cellar with Remus. The babies would be fed with the bottle that night. Richard and Venetia anxiously watched the warded crib in which their grandson lay. The moon came up, they could hear Remus down in the cellar, but the little boy did not transform. He just slept peacefully and never noticed when Richard took down the ward and left the room with the representative from the Werewolf Registry.  
  
"Well, that at least takes a heavy load off my shoulders," Richard admitted, when he had closed the door.  
  
"He doesn't show the least bit of a sign that he inherited the werewolf. I do suggest that you should watch him closely for a couple of full moons though."  
  
"We will certainly do that. It's bad enough that Remus has to go through this every month. It would have been tragic if he'd passed it on and he would hate himself for it. He'll be more than relieved. Since Polaris' birth he's been very anxious."  
  
"The way I have learned to know your son he must have been. He is a very special werewolf. I have never met anyone quite like him."  
  
"He is a special person. He'll always have a special place in our hearts, Masterson."  
  
"He's your son after all. Other parents have just chucked their children out when they were turned. I tend to deeply respect all those who stick to their children."  
  
"Thank you. And thanks for your visit and witnessing. We're very happy about these two children."  
  
"You're welcome. Good night, Lupin. Goodbye, Mrs Lupin!" he called to Venetia and left through the front door from where he disapparated.  
  
The first thing Remus asked when he saw his mother in the morning was whether Polaris was okay.  
  
"Yes, love, he hasn't transformed. He's perfectly fine. You can relax, sweetheart."  
  
"I'm so glad..."   
  
Remus was out of it for most of the day. They woke him to feed Polaris, but he did it only half awake. That was enough for the baby though and after the next night they were both getting better.  
  
Sirius fared quite well with Vega. His little daughter was as strong as her brother and suckled eagerly every time he offered her the nipple. It still hurt him a bit, but after the two weeks since her birth things started to get regular and he felt better.   
  
Once they had a certain rhythm Sirius and Remus exchanged the baby they nursed every other time. They needed to get close to both their children and with them being only a week apart they could swap without any problems. 


	9. 09 Another Return to Hogwarts

Title: Baby Boom! 9/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**9. Another Return to Hogwarts**  
  
Of course the babies' godparents, James and Lily for Polaris, Peter and Sabina for Vega, came to see them ever so often. By Christmas both babies had smiled at their fathers for the first time. After the new year started, Sirius and Remus returned to Hogwarts for a while to get a better grip at their latest power surge. It had set in a few weeks after the babies were born. They arrived at the school with the children and their considerable paraphernalia. Minerva showed them to a suite of rooms looking out on the south of the castle. They could see Hagrid's cabin and the lake. The suite was on the fourth floor near the hospital wing. In fact, Poppy Pomfrey was their neighbour.   
  
Most of the teachers oohed and aahed over the children. Venetia had made a lot of baby clothes for them, sewn and knitted. Sirius and Remus took them with them wherever they went in the castle. They spent a good amount of time in the library, where they had taken residence in a spot near a window at the back of the library. They read a lot of things they had never treated in class.  
  
After a week Sirius had his first encounter with his brother since he was back at Hogwarts. He had Vega on his breast and read at the same time when Regulus spotted him.  
  
"I don't believe this!" Regulus cried, "Look at that, Stan, will you!"   
  
Rabastan Lestrange, just a couple of steps behind Regulus, stared open-mouthed at Sirius. They went closer immediately.  
  
"Sirius? What's that supposed to mean?" Regulus demanded.  
  
Sirius looked up and frowned. It was just time to shift Vega to the other breast, so he gently pushed a small finger into her mouth to make her let go. She mumbled something and he switched her to the other side and encouraged her tenderly to continue suckling.  
  
"There you go, love... - Hello, Regulus. You didn't expect me to send you a card with her birth announcement, now did you? You can tell mum that she's become the grandmother of a girl and a boy. This is Vega."  
  
"What? You're not going to tell me that YOU gave birth to twins?" Regulus shouted.  
  
"Could you possibly lower your voice? If not for her then for the sake of this being a library. I gave birth to her, Remus had our son, Polaris."  
  
Regulus sputtered something about blood traitors and abominations, but he'd done it too loud, because Madam Pince turned up on the scene and asked Sirius:  
  
"Is there a problem, Mr. Black?"  
  
"Nothing I couldn't handle, Madam Pince. Only my brother here has been a bit out of sorts, maybe he should go and see the nurse..."  
  
Madam Pince only needed to nod away from the spot and the two Slytherin sixth years moved away. Sirius snickered in a low voice after they had vanished. He looked down on Vega.  
  
"That was a good one, love. Wonder what my dear old mum has to say to that! She must have been outraged when she learned that she couldn't disinherit me. Now most of her precious Black stuff will still be left to me and not her precious Regulus. Wonder, if he already knows that? I bet he's already a Death Eater."  
  
The baby suckled on, hearing her father's soft voice but not understanding what he said. He was glad for that and he hoped fervently that she would never have to meet his mother. He took the time to reminisce about his feelings during the pregnancy. Once he had started to feel comfortable with it he had learned to listen deep inside of himself. Feel his baby. He had often talked to the unborn baby in his belly. Had just sat in a window seat and caressed her through his belly.  
  
"You are my little wonder, Vega. You and Polaris, too, of course. You don't really know yet, but I love you more than my life..."  
  
Sirius hadn't noticed that Remus was standing next to the nearest bookshelf listening in to him and smiling. He carried Polaris on his arm. The baby was already asleep, having finished his meal. Remus also carried a thick baby blanket, which he spread on the rug next to the armchair in which he wanted to sit. Sirius noticed him.  
  
"Hey! Have you been eavesdropping?"   
  
"Just a bit. I love you! What are you reading?"  
  
"I was reading up on the Unforgivables. I'm doing some research for Lily. She's doing her bit at the Ministry and I'm going through everything that I can find here. There's quite a lot to read."  
  
"To possibly develop counter curses?"  
  
"Yeah, mostly. Though it's nowhere said that we'll succeed. We'd like to find something that can put a stopper on Avada Kedavra. Like putting a spell on people that would make them 'immune' against it. Most people wouldn't stand a chance to cast a counter curse. - And what are you after?"  
  
"Dark creatures for one. And then the latest news is that there are rumours that the Death Eaters are carrying some kind of a mark branded in their forearm. All the ones that were captured had the same thing. We believe it's some means of communication."  
  
Vega was through suckling. Sirius marked the book on the table next to him to tend to her fully. She looked at him and smiled. He pulled her up to his shoulder and waited for the little belch. Then he wiped the milk off her little mouth and put her down to sleep on the blanket next to her brother.   
  
"Here you go, love! Have a nice nap!" he whispered and waited until the little girl fell asleep.   
  
Then he sat up in the armchair again and picked up his book. Soon both young men were immersed in the books and took extensive notes.   
  
That's how Dumbledore found them a short while later. He conjured another armchair and some tea for them.   
  
"Hello, Professor!" Remus said.  
  
"A very good afternoon to you, too, Remus! And Sirius. I see you have made yourselves quite comfortable here..."  
  
"We'll have a couple of thousand books to work through, we thought it was appropriate," Sirius grinned.  
  
"Absolutely. I trust that Irma has nothing against it?"  
  
"No, in fact she's been the greatest of support. We've uncovered a few rare beauties."  
  
Dumbledore looked down on the sleeping children.  
  
"And your children are well, too?"  
  
"At least they don't seem to mind the not so bright room..." Remus replied, looking down on them.  
  
"I was actually coming down for something else, but I have an idea. It might be better if you worked a bit more in secret, so how about I show you one of the rooms close to here that you could have for yourselves? You would be completely undisturbed there."  
  
"That would be great. I've just been hit on by Regulus and the little Lestrange. Nasty piece of work that one. If we'd have a room for ourselves we could set up a crib for the children, that would be better than having them sleep on the blanket," Sirius said.  
  
"I would expect that your brother was a bit surprised? Or have you informed your family about the newest addition to the Black family tree?"  
  
"Don't even want to think about it! I've certainly been blasted off like my mother burned off Andromeda's name. So I suppose the children will not show up there."  
  
"You would know that better than I. Anyway, if one of you wants to come along I'll show you the rooms I have in mind."  
  
Remus got up and nodded. He followed Dumbledore to one of the side rooms of the library. Dumbledore studied the shelves for a moment and then pointed to a book.  
  
"This is Nicolas Flamel's first work on the Philosopher's Stone. He noted down a lot of things about it, never actually talks about it in the book, so from reading it no one could make one, which is why the book is still here and out in the open. Quite inconspicuous, I do not think many students lose themselves in this wing of the library. - Actually, Remus, if you do want to hide something important, you might consider of putting it out in the open among other things. I grant you that only people who are desperate to find it and really look for it, will do so. Anyway, there is a secret entrance behind this book. The password is 'Ollivander's wands'. I suggest to keep the door hidden you'd best take a few books out of the shelf. That will make it harder to deduct the one you're actually using. Then stick the book in different places. Madam Pince is aware of the fact that the book travels on the shelf."  
  
Remus took the book, whispered the password and watched as the shelf swung forward, revealing a nice door. Behind the door was a corridor. As soon as Albus had passed it, the magical candles flickered to light and they walked through the corridor and to an adjacent corridor. They passed a door on the way and Remus saw a window at the end of the corridor. Albus stopped at the last door just before the window and opened it.   
  
"This is a fairly old part of the castle. These chambers are hardly used these days. They might still be a bit dusty, but I will send some house-elves to clean them up. Here you are..."  
  
Remus looked around. He had entered into a very nice large sitting room, furnished with antique sofas and armchairs, which were grouped around a coffee table of considerable size. There was a larger round table in a corner with several chairs. The ground was covered with beautiful carpets. The walls opposite the windows were covered with old bookcases behind glass doors. There was a fireplace in the middle of the wall between the bookcases. Everything looked a bit dusty, but very nice. There were two windows and a door leading to another room. Remus nodded.  
  
"That's brilliant. It's bright with the light from the outside and spacious enough to do research comfortably."  
  
"Splendid. You are both doing enormously important work right now. You should do it in comfort. Lily will join you here for a good part of the week soon. She is still held up being trained at the Department of Experimental Charms, but in a month or so she should be ready and bring along quite a lot of obscure things to work through. While you two are still being trained it will occupy you nicely."  
  
When they returned to the corridor, Dumbledore pointed to the end of it:  
  
"Instead of turning left at the next corridor you can follow this one and it will lead you to the main hallway to the library. The door is behind a painting. If you open it from this side you can look at it and remember it. The password is the same. You can cover this door with your own password."  
  
Remus nodded, then they both returned to the library. They sat down again. Remus poured another cup of tea, which had been kept warm and warmed himself up.   
  
"To show you an extra room was not the real reason I was coming here. I would like to invite the two of you into the Order of the Phoenix."  
  
Sirius and Remus looked at him.  
  
"What's that?" Sirius asked.  
  
"It's a not very large group of people who want to intensify the fight against the Death Eaters. Alastor and his Aurors are really doing a fine job, but they are too out in the open. There are a few older Aurors who are already a member of this Order, as well as professionals from all sorts of branches. Many people are not aware about how much they can actually contribute, but they usually quickly learn in the Order."  
  
"How do we join?" Remus asked.  
  
"You just join upon invitation. That's what I'm giving you now. All that's asked of you is to regularly show up at the meetings."  
  
"Where are the meetings held?" Sirius wanted to know.  
  
The gleam in Sirius' eyes told Dumbledore that Sirius was quite keen on fighting Voldemort.  
  
"Mostly here at Hogwarts. We are still building up a headquarter. You will be called for the meetings as we do not hold them regularly. It is easier to remain a secret society if you do not meet all too regularly. People cannot watch you so easily."  
  
"Yes, we will both join the Order," Sirius said, throwing a glance at his husband, who nodded.  
  
"Very well. Some members of your family have already joined, Remus, we count on all of your older siblings as well as your mother and father. It is important for us to have a good base at the Ministry. I would like to thank you both for not losing your trust in me. I admit that I have not always been too forthcoming with information. But I am still glad that I have never told you a lie either."  
  
"Forgiven. We love the children," Remus said, looking at his children with so much love in his eyes.  
  
Dumbledore recognised the sentiment in his former student.   
  
"That is wonderful, Remus. I am happy that the two of you are happy with your family."  
  
"I never knew what it meant to have a loving family, Professor. You know my parents. The atmosphere at Grimmauld Place would not allow for any form of tenderness. I do intend to give my children all the love I never got. Because it's easy to love. James and then Remus taught me that first and then Richard and Venetia gave freely what my parents denied me," Sirius said.   
  
"Good. That is very good. I do think you deserve it, Sirius. Now I shall send the house-elves to that room for you. There would be some bedrooms as well, if you should prefer to move in fully you are welcome, too, by the way. I think, it would be a good idea, because you'd be out of the main school this way. Better for the secrecy of your research..."  
  
"Thank you, Professor. I think, we will. It's quite a lovely place."  
  
Dumbledore left them and they turned back to their work. They held on until their children woke from their naps and wanted to be fed. Remus took care of Vega, Sirius picked Polaris up. They made themselves comfortable and let the children suckle.  
  
"Being both equipped like that has its advantages - we can feed them at once," Remus said and chuckled.  
  
"Yes, that's a lucky bit. We'd have had a lot less sleep otherwise."  
  
After the feeding Remus and Sirius conjured a large trolley to place the books and their parchments and took everything including the children to the new room. Remus pulled out a couple of books, silently showed Sirius the one he needed, then they spoke the password to the shelf. They passed through the door, closed it and Remus showed Sirius the way to the rooms Dumbledore had given them. He covered the door with another password and opened it. They pushed the trolley through.   
  
The house-elves were still busy with the bedrooms. There was a lot of dust to be removed and everything needed to be covered with new fabric. While Sirius and Remus were off to their current chambers to pick up their things the house-elves gave their rooms a lovely squashy Gryffindor tower feel. They returned and found a series of perfect rooms. There was the large sitting room with the huge fireplace. A lovely fire crackled on the grate now, giving the room a cosy warm feeling. The stone walls were covered with thick tapestries to keep the warmth in and the hardwood floor was mostly covered with thick oriental rugs. Sirius held Polaris on his arm and walked on to see the other rooms. The door led to a smaller room, which had already been decorated as a nursery. Two cribs waited for their new inhabitants. They looked ancient, but really beautiful. They were both fitted with light blue bedclothes. Two dressers with a changing table on top and two rocking chairs with footstools completed the furniture. There was another door to a large bathroom. The tub was big enough for the whole family, white enamel with gold fittings. The same colours were used for the sinks and the toilet. The bathroom cabinets were of brass and glass, filled with the usual fluffy Hogwarts towels. Then they got to the final room, which was their bedroom. It didn't surprise them that it contained a huge four poster fitted with red velvet hangings. There was a chaise-longue pushed to one wall, a sofa and two armchairs with a small coffee table stood close to the fireplace and here, too, the walls were covered in thick tapestries. There was a high mirror just next to the door. At the end of the room another door to the right led through a boudoir to a further room around the corner. It was furnished as another bedroom. The boudoir was filled with large cupboards and shelves for clothes. There was a dressing table and a few chairs around a tiny round tea table.  
  
"This is amazing! You guys have done a sensational job!" Sirius said to the house-elves, who took the compliments with beaming faces.  
  
"We is very happy to have you back, sirs! You have always been the kindest sirs with us house-elves! We is happy to do everything for you!" one of them said.  
  
Remus and Sirius knew all of these house-elves by their names and never treated them badly, which was why their visits down in the kitchens were always welcome.  
  
"Thank you, Kliby, you have always been most helpful! Now that's all for the moment, but would you mind to bring us dinner at six thirty?" Remus asked.  
  
"Yes sir, I is doing this!" one of the house-elves said and they all vanished with a crack.  
  
Until then Remus and Sirius took turns in getting their things from the other rooms to this flat. When they finally sat down to eat their dinner from the finest porcelain, Sirius said:  
  
"Well, that's something! Much better than what we had up to now. I could make a home of this here..."  
  
Remus grinned. He liked the place. It had a very antique feeling and he guessed that the furniture must have been crafted around the mid eighteenth century. There were a few beautiful sideboards and some lovely cabinets in the sitting room. And of course they had to look through all the books in the floor to ceiling bookcases, too.   
  
"I suppose we'll be here for a while. The really good thing is that it is safe for the children. I'm so worried about my nieces. Voldemort is out there and he's looking for us. He can guess that we're still in training, so he wants us gone sooner rather than later."  
  
Sirius frowned. He didn't often admit it, but he was terrified, too.   
  
"Some Gryffindors we are. Terrified of a stupid Dark Lord," he muttered.   
  
A rap on one of the windows drew their attention to an owl who wanted in. Remus opened the window and the owl dropped a letter on the table and flew to join Sirius' Silas on his perch.  
  
"It's James' Libby. I bet that she's quite taken with Silas, she's always staying much longer than she's supposed to..." Sirius said with a grin.  
  
Remus opened the letter and read it. He grinned and passed it to Sirius who read it, too.  
  
"She's waiting for a reply."  
  
"He's popped the question!!!" Sirius exclaimed. "Now that's great, Remus! They're going to get married, how nice. Well done, mate."  
  
James invited them to their engagement party on the next Saturday. Sirius picked up his quill and quickly jotted down a yes as an answer and called Libby over.   
  
"Come on, sweetie, you're going to take that nice short letter back to your daddy!" he said and fixed it on her leg.   
  
Remus gave her an owl treat, opened the window again and the owl took off.   
  
"We'll have to take the children along or someone has to feed them bottles that evening..." Remus said.  
  
"I'm just thinking about that. We could take them to your parents' place and apparate to check on them."  
  
"We could do that. Mum and dad should be willing to help..."  
  
Sirius wrote a quick note to Richard and Venetia, asking them to watch over the children on that Saturday. He sent it off with Silas.  
  
"Done. So. We have some free time, love, what are we going to do with it?"  
  
"How about some chess?"  
  
"I'm in."  
  
They spent the time between the next feedings of their children playing chess and went to bed early. They knew they would have to get up at least once during the night.   
  
On Saturday they walked to the gates of Hogwarts, their children held close to them in slings, and apparated to the Lupins' home, where they gave the two little ones to their grandparents. Venetia and Richard loved to have them and give Remus and Sirius a free evening.  
  
"I heard you've been working very hard," Richard remarked.  
  
"We've already gone through quite a pile of books," Remus confirmed.  
  
"And the training of your powerful magic?"  
  
"Is going well, too. We have moved into a very nice antique suite of rooms, close to the library," Sirius said.  
  
"You should come visit us there once. It's really beautiful!" Remus added.  
  
"Yes, why not? Dinner sometime next week?"  
  
"That's a deal! Just tell us which day. We'll see to it that Rupert and Rowland can join us for the meal."  
  
"So you're not eating at the Great Hall?"  
  
"No, rarely."  
  
"I suppose you met your brother, Sirius?"  
  
"Yes, once or twice. And I suppose that Voldemort is aware of our children now."  
  
"We have already cast the "Sanguis familia" spell on this house, Sirius, he will not be able to harm them in here. Dumbledore has given us the spell and it's been cast successfully just after you gave birth to them. Because we knew we couldn't keep you inside forever. You need to go out, you're so young!"  
  
"We will, mum, but first we need to get rid of Voldemort," Remus said with a grim expression.  
  
Then they left for the engagement party for James and Lily, which was held at James' parents' house, which was larger than the Evans'. There were dozens of people mingling around, mostly friends from Hogwarts, relatives of James' and some of Lily's relatives as well.   
  
"Hey, there's my best man and his best man!" James screamed when he spotted their arrival.  
  
"Hey there! Methinks, it's the groom!"  
  
They all exchanged greetings and then Sirius and Remus were introduced to the people they didn't know. There were colleagues of James' and Lily's from the Ministry, some of his relatives and her relatives.  
  
"These are my parents, mum, dad, these are Sirius and Remus Black-Lupin. They're a married couple and they have the two cutest little babies which I suppose are waiting back at Remus' parents' home."  
  
"Right in one. We'll have to apparate over once or twice to check on them," Sirius said, beaming.   
  
Mr. Evans looked slightly confused. He could see that both, Sirius and Remus were built rather like women, so he asked Lily:  
  
"Tell me, how does that work? They sound like they have male names, but they look rather like... err... females..."  
  
Lily grinned and explained:  
  
"That's magic, dad. They are actually both. Due to certain circumstances which I cannot explain to you they have developed all the female parts necessary for reproduction, though they didn't know at the time, that's why they were trapped into being pregnant so early. The children were born within a week from each other last December."  
  
"Wow... so they are actually two gay men?" Mr. Evans was really interested.  
  
"Bingo!"  
  
"Crazy! You people are totally crazy! I love it!"   
  
Lily grinned. She had not been aware that her sister Petunia and her fiancé Vernon Dursley had been behind them, but their snort of disgust made their presence known.   
  
"Oh, and these are my sister Petunia and Vernon Dursley, her fiancé. They're due for the altar in May. These are Sirius and Remus Black-Lupin. You may remember that they were both James' and Peter's best friends at Hogwarts."  
  
Petunia gave them both a glare and the coldest and shortest handshake Sirius and Remus could remember.  
  
"Nice to meet you, Petunia," Remus said with his usual kind way.  
  
"You lot are not exactly what I want to have around me..." Petunia hissed.  
  
"Now why would you say something so ugly?" Sirius piped up cheerfully, "We're such nice and fun people."  
  
"Two men becoming pregnant sounds like a violation of nature," she replied.  
  
"Oh, that disturbs you. Well, we wouldn't have chosen it, but someone held back the fact that we COULD, in fact, fall pregnant, so we didn't do anything about it. But even after only barely two months we wouldn't want to miss our little ones. We have a boy and a girl. You'll probably see for yourself over short or long, that having a baby is the most special thing you can experience!" Sirius told her.   
  
But neither he nor Remus lingered. They had taken an immediate dislike of Vernon Dursley, which pleased Lily very much, because she hated the man with a passion. When they were together with Peter, James and Dari later on she told them:  
  
"I'm dead sure he's made her this bad! She never really liked that I'm a witch, but she didn't really mind either. Since she's been with him and he knew she's turned around completely. Don't know what she sees in him!"  
  
"Forget it, Lily! You look so happy now!" Remus said.  
  
"I am! We are! You know the feeling... of course we won't be able to life-bond like you, I wish we could though. I'll come to Hogwarts in two weeks by the way. Will spend most of my time with you guys, which is just fine, because James will be out in the field."  
  
They enjoyed an evening of talking and laughing together like they did in their school days. Remus turned to Peter:  
  
"I'm to send all the best and all her love from Sabina! I saw her in the library today. She's toiling for the NEWTS. Can't wait to get out of there, because she misses you!"  
  
"That's only a fraction of how I miss her! But it's less than half a year now. She intends to join her dad in his apothecary at Diagon Alley."  
  
"Good for you, that won't be far away."  
  
"No, it won't. And she won't have to look for a job."  
  
Peter looked down on the floor for a moment and then turned back to the others, announcing:  
  
"And then I'm going to ask her to marry me..."  
  
"Woohoo, Go Peter!" James hooted and all of their friends followed suit.  
  
"You're doing great, man! Give us lots of nice little Peters after that, will you?" Sirius said and smiled.  
  
"You can talk, now that you know all about it," Peter teased back.  
  
Sirius' smile became softer.  
  
"You don't know how great the feeling is to have a tiny human in your arms! Just you wait, Peter, once you'll know you will also know how much there is you want to defend! Sod Voldemort and his idiots! Really! I'd gladly give my life for Vega and Polaris."  
  
"Yes, well, that's you and your super-human powers... you can easily say that," Peter replied sombrely.  
  
"No, Peter, the motivation in this case is love," Remus said, "Have you never noticed that your love for Sabina has unleashed more power in you? Remember when you did much better in your NEWTS than in your OWLS? You were driven by the positive feelings inside of you, you are happy with Sabina, you know we're your friends, that helped you get stronger. Her love gave you self-confidence we could never build up in you."  
  
Peter looked puzzled for a moment, but then James started to grin and exclaimed: "Yes, that's true! Once you were together with Sabina our work in boosting your self-confidence seemed like a piece of cake!"  
  
And Peter had to admit that this was true. He looked a bit sad though.  
  
"Still... I'm no good. It's through others that it was done."  
  
"Again you're putting yourself down too much, Peter. We could only unleash what was already in you, we couldn't add anything to you. When you got better at school that was your own potential. You were just a late bloomer," Remus countered with a smile.  
  
"Thanks, guys! And in that case thanks for putting up with me for so long. You really did help me stand on my own feet..." Peter mumbled.  
  
"What do you mean? You had some of the most brilliant ideas for pranks ever, Pete!" Sirius yelled, "there's no reason to thank us for something that was no big deal when you participated in it!"  
  
And they all laughed and wished Peter luck to pop the question to Sabina.  
  
Sirius apparated to Wales to see how the little ones did. Both slept quite soundly, but he decided to pick them up one by one and feed them both. Since they were both asleep he woke up Polaris softly and took him down to the living room. He sat down and conjured a cushion to be comfortable nursing his son. Polaris, once awake, gladly took the offered food. Venetia, watching her son-in-law, chuckled and said:  
  
"You're gaining routine at this, eh?"  
  
He smiled. "Yes, we do. But it's a great feeling..."  
  
"I know that very well, Sirius."  
  
"Of course. Having had seven of them."  
  
"Will you want more?"  
  
"I don't know. Not just now, that's for sure, but one day... I hope we can get Voldemort out of the picture before that."  
  
Sirius caressed the baby as it suckled. Polaris pedalled lightly with his legs and arms, but he gripped Sirius' index finger with his tiny hands. He smiled down at the nursing child with a look so tender it almost brought tears to Venetia's eyes. She wondered if Richard had felt the same kind of emotions back when he watched her nursing. Sirius seemed wrapped up in it just the way she used to be.   
  
"You know it's quite amazing to share such typical female things with one's son and son-in-law. You seem to be happy."  
  
"Right now I could burst with happiness, it's just pouring out. It's so easy to love the little buttons. And Remus!"  
  
"How did it turn out with your sexual organs, Sirius?"  
  
"Still the same as during the last month of pregnancy. I suppose it will right itself sooner or later. Maybe nursing has something to do with it. I'm not worried. Even if prolactin is the driving hormone right now there's enough testosterone in us to remain males... interesting enough both of us have our testicles in place, only the penis has made room for the vagina."  
  
"Strange..."  
  
"It's given us both even more magical power, Venetia! Sometimes that's scary. I mean, both of us would never misuse that power, but what if it becomes known again and Voldemort starts creating werewolves left and right to do what we just did?"  
  
"He doesn't know that Remus is a werewolf, does he?" Venetia asked, fear in her eyes.  
  
"As far as we know he doesn't. It'd be horrible..."  
  
"Well, he'd need to have a werewolf attacking a young child and that child would have to mate with someone the way you did. Always provided that child would survive in the first place."  
  
"He'd not worry about that. He'd just abduct any child. Hell, he'd even MAKE children just for that purpose. Or would put his Death Eaters behind it. I'm quite sure, some of his female followers would even offer to carry such a child. And if it didn't take years until the child would be old enough he'd do it tomorrow..."   
  
"On the other hand, don't forget that love is part of the bond. Without it the bond would probably never happen, so you can't just put two individuals together and tell them to get bonded the way you and Remus are..."  
  
"And according to Dumbledore Voldemort has no concept of love at all... neither have most of the Death Eaters."  
  
Polaris let go of the nipple. Sirius gently helped him catch it again. The baby suckled a few sips more, then let go.  
  
"Is that it, love? No more? Well, then let's get you back to bed and take on your sister..."  
  
Sirius closed the bra he wore and pulled up his robe, then he took Polaris back to his crib and picked up and brought Vega, as soon as Polaris was asleep again.  
  
"I love how you love to sleep, child," he whispered to his son.  
  
He took Vega along and as she started suckling Venetia asked:  
  
"Does it make any difference for you whether you nurse Vega or Polaris?"  
  
"Not at all. Just a little mouth sucking milk actually. Yep, that's you, little lady. You and your brother... we're doing this at times, one of us feeding both of them, especially at night. Though in the morning it feels like our breasts are exploding when they haven't suckled during the night. It's happened last week that Remus had slept the night through and then let Vega suckle. She's a bit more eager than Polaris. Grabbed the nipple and the milk spurted out at her! I had to clean her face before she could give it another try!"  
  
Venetia laughed.   
  
"You don't stop producing milk that quickly. But it's good that there's enough for them in both of you."  
  
"But Remus didn't like the feeling much! It can become painful. Also we've decided that we switch them. I'm usually nursing Vega two times, then Polaris two times. We do that so that they get used to both breasts, not only one side."  
  
Once Vega had been fed everything in Sirius' breast he let her suckle what was left on the side Polaris had used a while before. She still found a few sips and let go of the nipple, yawning.  
  
"No wonder you're tired, little one. You've been sucking like a milking machine. Now you're going back to sleep? That's my girl..."  
  
Vega slept again by the time he reached the children's room and laid her back down in her crib. He said goodbye to Venetia and returned to the party at the Potters. There were now only his friends left, the rest of the party had vanished, including Martha and Oliver.   
  
"Everything okay?" Remus asked.  
  
"Yep. Both fed and sleeping again."  
  
"You're nursing them both?" Lily asked, astonished.  
  
"Sure. There's enough in here, believe me. Remus will suffer a bit, because he'll almost burst with milk..." Sirius replied with a smirk.  
  
"And that hurts pretty badly. But I'll have them both next time around."  
  
"I'm still wondering, how you could even give birth to them," Hope Foster, Dari's new girlfriend asked.  
  
Remus blushed. Sirius blushed, too, though much less.   
  
"Do you really want to know? - I guess, you're a former Ravenclaw after all."  
  
Hope grinned.  
  
"Well, in the last weeks before they were born, the required opening developed in the place of our penis. It's still there for the time being..."  
  
Hope and Dari grinned even wider.   
  
"Our two gay boys are LESBIANS right now! Isn't that just too funny?" they hooted.  
  
Peter and James shook with laughter. Remus blushed even more, but Sirius said:  
  
"Well, not quite. Our balls are still firmly in place, holding the fortress!"  
  
The others laughed even more. But they came back down and after a while started discussing other things. Lily told them she'd be coming to Hogwarts soon and that she was looking forward to it. Remus and Sirius invited their friends for a dinner at their new flat. It became very late, but finally Remus and Sirius returned to Wales and got a few short hours of sleep.   
  
Remus woke early. His breasts hurt him and milk oozed out of them. He grabbed a towel and put it underneath himself to catch the drops. Sirius woke up next to him, stretched a bit and touched Remus' nipples. Remus hissed.  
  
"Pain?" Sirius asked, worried.  
  
"No... I wouldn't call it pain... went right down to where it feels best is what I'd call it."  
  
"Really?"  
  
Sirius turned to Remus and started to lick the nipples, then suck them into his mouth and when he started to suck Remus almost screamed.  
  
"Oh! Wow, that feels good..."  
  
Sirius took a small amount of the milk. It tasted sweet, he thought.  
  
"No wonder the kids like that stuff so much. Give it a try yourself, love!" he said and turned on his back.  
  
"What! You want me to suckle on your tits?"  
  
"Yeah! Get out some of the milk. Tastes great! You're the sweet tooth among us anyway! You should like it."  
  
Remus leaned in and gave it a try. Sirius responded the same way as he had done.   
  
"You're right, this feels great! Come on, just a bit more..."  
  
Remus caught some of the milk and liked it. He licked Sirius' nipples and suckled on them until they were dark red. Sirius sighed and moaned softly.  
  
Vega and Polaris fetched them from their well-being. They cried for breakfast and got it as quick as Remus and Sirius were able to get up. Both found a breast and the milk in it and looked content immediately.   
  
Once they were up they got dressed and went downstairs to raid the kitchen for some breakfast of their own. Both of them emptied a large glass of water before they started eating. Having to produce all that milk made them thirsty. Then they ate a well sized breakfast. Venetia came down and watched them tuck in.  
  
"You have a healthy appetite..."  
  
"Seems that producing milk for the babies is pretty demanding... we're constantly hungry and still have lost all the weight from the pregnancy already," Sirius explained.  
  
"Yes, I know the feeling. Are you going back to Hogwarts today?"  
  
"Yes. We'd like to go on with our work..."  
  
They left right after breakfast, apparated their babies to the gates of Hogwarts and rode their brooms up to the castle.  
  
Remus and Sirius attended their first meeting of the Order of the Phoenix at Hogwarts only a few days after James and Lily's engagement party. They found a motley crew of quite special people in the room where the Order met and noticed, that James, Lily, Peter, Dari and Hope were among the newcomers, too. They were introduced to the older members and took part in the discussions of tasks already on the go or planned. People who had missions reported on them, ideas were collected to help them on if they were stuck somewhere, the material they brought was analysed and new tasks were handed out.   
  
Dumbledore talked with Peter.  
  
"Your ability to turn into a rat could be invaluable to us, Peter. Does anyone know that you can do this outside of your friends?"  
  
"Not to my knowledge."  
  
"Good. If you are willing and ready we can take you to places where we know the Death Eaters to congregate and you can listen in on them. The perfect inconspicuous spy..."  
  
Peter's eyes gleamed. He had done that a number of times when he spied for the Marauders, he'd been around Hogwarts like no other student before him. And finally he was unique in something and that uniqueness would be of value for an important cause. He would prove himself without the assistance of his friends.   
  
"I am, sir," he said.  
  
James, Remus and Sirius all beamed at him. Sirius piped up:  
  
"We're so proud of you, Peter, you'll be great at this and you'll help us a lot!"  
  
Peter's first chance to spy came soon. One of the older Order members took him to a clearing in a forest where a small circle of Death Eaters congregated around their Lord. Instantly the little rat had found a spot to hide and scurried out of sight. No one paid him any mind. He would stay there until everyone left and then find his way back to the Order.  
  
Voldemort looked his Death Eaters over, with a deep frown on his ugly flat face.  
  
"What do you mean you couldn't get to the house, Lucius? Wards can be brought down! Now they're back in that blasted castle where we really cannot harm them. And what's more they have reproduced!" he hissed.  
  
"I don't know how to get close to them, my Lord. I have tried everything. Unless we can plant a spy among them we see no way of getting close to them. They seem to have grown antennas to feel us."  
  
"That is no excuse! I must get my hands on these two men! There is something about them that makes them powerful and I must know what it is... they must be eliminated!"  
  
"If you'd allow me to propose something, my Lord..." Rodolphus Lestrange said.  
  
"What, Rodolphus?"  
  
"A spy among them wouldn't be such a bad idea. It should be fairly easy to scare Peter Pettigrew into spying on them and giving us the information we need..."  
  
Voldemort looked pleased.  
  
"Ah yes! The weakest link, so to speak. But who should approach him?" he asked.  
  
"I think, Augustus Rookwood has connections to the Pettigrews."  
  
"A very good idea. And very inconspicuous, too. I shall contact Augustus. We shall see how much we can get out of him and should he be useless we can still eliminate him. I commend you, young Rodolphus."  
  
Peter was hidden underneath a pile of leaves from the last fall. His first time out as a spy and he had to hear that he was to be recruited as a spy for Voldemort. He shuddered at the mere thought of such a horror. After the Death Eaters vanished, he scuttled away from the scene and met up with the other order members only minutes later at the meeting point.  
  
"Did you find anything out?" Alastor Moody asked.  
  
"Oh yes, you could say I did! What am I going to do? They want to recruit me to spy on all of my friends. Mainly to find out why Remus and Sirius are so powerful!"  
  
"Oh dear! Let's take you back to Albus and see what he thinks..."  
  
Dumbledore offered them some tea and after Peter had drunk the first few sips he looked up and said:  
  
"I'm supposed to be recruited as a spy for them! But I don't want to do that, sir! What can I do?"  
  
Dumbledore thought for a moment, then he asked:  
  
"Did Voldemort mention who was to approach you?"  
  
Peter thought for a moment. Then he nodded.  
  
"Yes! Someone called Augustus Rookwood. He seems to be some acquaintance of my parents."  
  
"Augustus Rookwood? Are you sure?" Alastor asked.  
  
"Yes. Yes, I'm sure that this was the name. This seems to be a surprise for you?"  
  
Dumbledore and Moody exchanged glances and nodded. Then Dumbledore said:  
  
"Well, I do not know about you, Alastor, but the only Augustus Rookwood I know is an Unspeakable and would have never been suspected to be a Death Eater..."  
  
"I think, it's probable that you will be contacted in the very next days, Pettigrew. We have several options now. Capturing Rookwood immediately would mean that Voldemort gets suspicious that someone in his own ranks is a spy. He'll know that only the people around him tonight would know about the plan... what do you think, Albus, should we thwart it?" Moody growled.  
  
"I think, Voldemort would still approach Peter - through someone else. But you are right, if something like this was leaking AND if we could have a trial where the reason to snatch Rookwood was that he was trying to recruit a spy FOR the Death Eaters it would mean trouble for those in Voldemort's inner circle. And that would at least be very entertaining to see for the rest of us."  
  
"Crouch will not easily allow us to arrest an Unspeakable..." Alastor said.  
  
"I think, he will consent. I am quite convinced, that Augustus must have the Mark on his wrist if Voldemort can casually make use of his services, which is quite a clear sign for one of them. Also you might get Richard Lupin's assistance, Crouch cannot work against his superior."  
  
"Let's hope for the best. Barty will jump to the ceiling at first, that much is clear."  
  
But two days later Augustus Rookwood was interrogated in a holding cell at the Ministry, after the Mark had been found on his arm. He played quite the blasé nobleman, but as soon as he was taken to court a few weeks later and Veritaserum came to play he spilled his beans quite nicely.  
  
Veritaserum had been developed very recently in one of the Ministry's lesser known departments and the effect had stunned everyone. Someone who obviously tried to tell a lie was compelled to speak the truth. Every single test person had shown the same typical signs when under the influence of the truth potion. They spoke in a monotonous tone and they spoke the truth. People had been asked to tell a very slight lie. Something that was very close to the truth and as soon as they had the truth potion they told their stories slightly different.   
  
And now for the first time they had brought this new potion to the light in court. The Ministry kept the strictest control over the potion's recipe. It was guarded day and night and only the most trusted Aurors were guarding it. Rookwood had already tried to get his fingers on the potion, very subtly of course, to pass it on to Voldemort's potions masters to find out its contents. Ironically he was now the first Death Eater to actually taste it in court.   
  
The only thing he didn't tell was of course who ratted him out. Because he didn't know. Voldemort seethed in his hide-out. He raged, punished his Death Eaters, but he couldn't find the leak.   
  
One morning a week after Peter's first successful foray into spying Sirius woke up and found himself and his male parts completely in order again. It was a strange feeling, especially when he heard Vega waking up and crying. He got up and went through the bathroom to the nursery. Polaris was still sound asleep, while Vega cried. Luckily she didn't scream at the top of her lungs and had been heard quickly, so her brother could still sleep. Sirius picked up his daughter and took her back to the bedroom, where he sat down next to Remus, who was only just waking up. While he watched Vega suckle he looked at Remus, who had just discovered that his mate had back what he was still waiting for. But he grinned. He calculated, that in about a week he'd feel more complete again himself, as Vega was a week older than Polaris.   
  
"Eight weeks old... she's getting cuter every day, love," Remus said.  
  
Sirius leaned in and kissed his mate on the cheek. Remus turned and kissed Sirius fully on the lips.  
  
"Can't wait to have you back inside of me, love! But today I'll have three books to go through..."  
  
"Well, that matches the three or four I'm looking forward to," Sirius countered with a grin.  
  
"And there's our regular training, not to forget..."  
  
Sirius grinned more, because he really enjoyed that training. They were regularly stretching their magical abilities. They were made to duel with each other and with very strong Aurors for hours on end to train not only their powers but also their physical condition.   
  
Lily arrived at Hogwarts and took residence in a similar apartment as Sirius and Remus on the other side of the corridor. She worked alongside of the boys and even attended some of their training sessions. 


	10. 10 Weddings

Title: Baby Boom! 10/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**10. Weddings**  
  
James and Lily got married on the second Saturday in August. They had chosen the date to be as far away from the full moon as they could find for Remus to really feel well on the date. Sirius was the best man, a duty he fulfilled with great enthusiasm. That's what he called it, Remus rather tended to call it exaggerated exuberance. But Sirius had fun planning a few funny schemes and he was exhilarated that the wedding was going to be a wizarding wedding.   
  
Security had to be tight. The young people around James Potter had all become a very dangerous sign for all Death Eaters as they were able to thwart many of the Death Eater's schemes in their earliest stages. In the past four months Remus had done a lot of travelling to apply his new knowledge about very specialised and personalised wards onto endangered people's houses. He had warded off Andromeda and Ted Tonks' house as well as the houses of some very prominent wizards. So far none of his wards had been breached. Dumbledore was quite pleased seeing his special pupil make some name and a bit of money for himself. Remus was happy to be able to earn some money of his own and help protect people. It had given his self-confidence an enormous boost.  
  
Sirius had been a bit more domestic watching the children for the most part, though both men continued to nurse their children. While he had always been the one who couldn't sit still he was now the one who didn't really mind being glued to the library and the home with the children.   
  
But of course he brought the old Padfoot back out for James and Lily's wedding! To be able to celebrate with no fear Remus had warded off a country inn somewhere in Essex and all the guests were brought in by Portkey. They didn't know where the Portkey took them, only Remus and Sirius knew. They personally made all the Portkeys which were the name tags for all the guests, preset on two o'clock, Saturday, seventh of August and took them to all the guests. The number of guests had to be limited to forty, so there were only the closest relatives and friends. James had his parents, Lily had her parents. Her sister had declined an invitation as soon as Lily said the wedding would be magical. Dumbledore officiated, Sirius was best man and Dari was maid of honour, together with their partners that made for the first eleven participants. Then there were Peter and Sabina, Professor McGonagall, all the members of the last Gryffindor Quidditch team apart from those who were there anyway and the closest colleagues from work.   
  
Because they had to fear attacks it was a small wedding party, but the intimacy of it made for a very fun party. All the people who wanted to could stay overnight, the nicest rooms had been reserved for the newlyweds. The Potters and the Evanses had paid a fairly high price to rent the whole inn for the weekend, so that the problems would be controllable. And through that they were able to enjoy a wonderful afternoon and evening. James and Lily radiated and looked very happy. Remus and Sirius enjoyed their time, even though Sirius had a few things to look after. They had left Vega and Polaris back at the Lupins, who were happy to look after them.   
  
After the official part and Dumbledore bonding James and Lily there was a bit of socialising before the big dinner was served at five thirty in the afternoon. For two hours they enjoyed the excellent food. Sirius had organised a few little games to entertain them all during the meal and to get some good laughs. Peter and Sabina had prepared a little show in which they played a few scenes about marriage clichés. Everyone enjoyed that a great deal, as it was extremely funny. But Dari got the biggest laugh - she went behind the scenes and came back wearing the most awful robes with lots of little things attached. Her hat put old Mrs Longbottom's to shame! She came back in, Sirius got the room's attention and then she started bawling in front of James. Everyone screamed of laughter when she acted out his old lover, chucked out for his new bride and gave him back all their 'souvenirs' which she plucked from her robes. They ranged from an old pair of boxers over the squashed tube of toothpaste to the last remaining condom and she had fabricated a little story to each of the items.   
  
They had just dried off their tears when the dessert was being served. Dari went back to get out of the dreadful clothes. When she sat down again Lily grabbed and embraced her.  
  
"That was brilliant, Dari! No one could have acted that out as well as you did! Thanks so much for embarrassing James to the bone!"  
  
James actually still looked rather red. Dari sat next to him and gave him a little shove. He grinned a bit sheepishly and said:  
  
"You know, some of that might actually hit a bit close to home. I had two or three girlfriends while I was actually in love with Lily and I'm sure that's about how I treated them..."  
  
"Forget it, James. You're together now and that's all that counts."  
  
After dinner the dance started and everyone got up to the floor to enjoy some music and a lot of dancing. Sirius could finally relax, because now his duties were more or less over and he could just enjoy himself with Remus. They were both staying over at the inn as well and were looking forward for a night of undisturbed rest.  
  
"...and hopefully some good sex, love! We're not getting any as often as I'd like..." Sirius whispered into his husband's ear.   
  
"I'm longing for you, Padfoot! Don't know when it's been that we had a whole night free. But it doesn't look that bad, I mean, Polaris is already sleeping through very nicely. Vega is fighting with her teeth, so that makes her a bit crankier, I can understand that..."  
  
Sirius smiled. So much of their lives now turned around their children and every conversation started somewhere else still landed with the little ones at some point.  
  
"Do you feel robbed of something, because we've had them so early?" he asked.  
  
"Well, yes, a bit if I'm completely honest. We could go out more and enjoy ourselves, but I'd do it with a very bad feeling. So I do feel a bit cheated out of that young adult time, but we have them, so it's just that. I love them so much and I feel their trust and love, so that's more than a reward for the things we do for them... besides having experienced that was amazing."  
  
"I agree with you. They're also going to be great fun and I can only say, woe to Minerva McGonagall when these two come to Hogwarts as students!"  
  
"Obviously they're going to be brought up to become the most insufferable pranksters," Remus said.  
  
"That's fate, Moony! How can they NOT be with two fathers like us?" Sirius was offended.  
  
Remus just laughed. He pulled Sirius into a kiss that lasted so long, that Sirius wanted to get out of the room, into theirs and into the bed.  
  
"Can't, love - you're the best man..." Remus reminded him.  
  
Some time after midnight the party started to wind down and some of the guests, especially the older ones, left the inn to apparate home. While there had been anti-apparition wards set up to apparate in, they could all leave without any problems. Mr. and Mrs Evans had received a two way Portkey, so they could just use their name tags to get back home. Remus activated the Portkey for them.  
  
The younger generation of course held out until way after two in the morning. Sirius and Remus asked to leave a lot before that and were granted the wish, because they would have to go back and pick their children up again. So the two men bid goodbye to all who were there and went up to the room they had chosen. It was small, but still big enough to hold a double bed, a dresser and two armchairs next to a fireplace. They went straight to bed. They were so hot for each other, they could hardly wait until they had torn their robes off. But somehow they managed and then they fell into the bed naked and greedy to have some good sex.   
  
Their still somewhat untypical male bodies made for some funny love-making. Both of them enjoyed it immensely to suck on each others' breasts, as these nipples were much more sensitive than what they had been used to before. They had quite well formed breasts, Sirius' were a bit more prominent than Remus'.   
  
Remus cupped them with his hand as he moved on top of Sirius, rubbing their erections together and enjoying the growing heat. Sirius tilted his head back on the pillow, closed his eyes and just felt. Remus' caresses on his breasts sent little jolts straight down into his cock, which he had found amazing every time they had made love in the past few months. Remus kissed him again, letting his tongue penetrate past those lips he so loved and felt welcomed and greeted by Sirius' tongue. Remus slung his arms around his husband's neck and held on tightly while they kissed. Sirius' arms snaked around him as well and they rolled around on the bed. They returned to Remus pinning Sirius down on the mattress, but moving a bit away, so he could get to Sirius' opening, which he slowly prepared.   
  
Once both of them had their male sexual orders returned to the original state Sirius and Remus had cast a contraceptive spell onto each other. According to Poppy Pomfrey this spell held until it would be removed with a specific counter spell. She assured them that it would not react to any casting of 'Finite Incantatem'. Nothing had happened so far and they were now quite relaxed.   
  
Sirius' hands wandered down along Remus' body, caressed him and finally made a grab for the cock, which was heavy and hot, just waiting to breach that ring of muscles and give him these wonderful feelings again. Sirius loved to be fucked. He loved to be top as well, but feeling Remus inside of him made him really happy. He needed to be 'needed'. And Remus did need him right now, he could hardly wait to plunge in. Though he penetrated carefully until Sirius was warmed up and he would be gliding easily. Slowly Remus began to move, in and out, back in with long, slow strokes, then back out, inside again, breathing deeper and panting after a short while. Sirius pulled him in, moaned loudly and egged him on to go faster.  
  
Remus stroked over Sirius' sweaty shoulder. He bent down to kiss him on the neck, soon leaving a love bite and then he moved up to the jaw and kissed all the way back to that wonderful sensual mouth he loved so much.  
  
"Sirius... Sirius, love... Sirius..." he repeated over and over.  
  
Sirius never got enough of hearing his husband call his name. Sometimes he also needed that, the assurance of his lover needing this, needing him. Sometimes he was still afraid that all would break to shards in front of him and he would be unable to do anything to prevent it from happening.   
  
But not in this moment. Not now, when he felt that wonderful cock thrusting deep inside of him, hitting his prostate and causing him to yowl and scream Remus' name. Remus folded his hand around Sirius' cock and rubbed it hard. They came almost at the same time. First, Sirius let go with a growl and a scream, then Remus followed him over the edge and let go as well. He kept thrusting until the very last drop of semen had been embedded deep inside of his lover.   
  
They flopped back down on the bed, next to each other. Sirius had only the strength left to wrap his arms around Remus and to pull him close, pressing a little kiss on Remus' mouth. Remus smiled at him and brushed the damp locks out of his face.   
  
"I love you, Padfoot," he said simply.  
  
"I love you, too, Moony," Sirius replied.  
  
It had become their standard phrase after sex. Reminding each other that their sex really meant making love to them. Only then could they fall asleep and really sleep together. It was like a bedtime ritual for the children.   
  
Because they had been in bed relatively early they were up quite early, too. Months of having to get up early because at least one of their babies called them for food had already conditioned them to become early risers. The good thing was that they had the cosy breakfast room for themselves. The sun streamed in and warmed them nicely. They had a great big breakfast in front of them. They talked about the next few days, what they had planned.  
  
"I'll be going over the last few books about Dark Curses. There are about ten or twelve left that I haven't read yet. I actually wish I could get my hand on the library at Grimmauld Place, that would give us some real insight at Dark Curses and potions!" Sirius said.  
  
"I'll be up at Hogwarts, too, for the most part. Then I have an order to ward about six more houses. According to Peter's intelligence Voldemort is beside himself because he can't get to these people. His own fault if he surrounds himself with mostly idiots. They may all be pure-blooded, but they're dumb nevertheless."  
  
"Yes, it was quite entertaining hearing his tirades. It was ingenious of you to think of a recording spell! Now we get so much of what he talks about first hand. And he still hasn't found the 'leak'! That's the most precious bit."  
  
"I would expect, that Lucius starts to wonder why he's got himself involved with this, if all he really gains is being punished with Cruciatus every other time he gets summoned," Remus grinned.   
  
One by one the other friends arrived in the breakfast room. The sun had already gone over the house by the time the last ones arrived. They all said their goodbyes and Remus obliviated the proprietors of the inn, so they wouldn't remember the strange things that had been going on over the weekend.   
  
Remus met Sirius at his parents' place where he was just picking up Vega for her afternoon meal. He followed suit with Polaris and both made themselves comfortable on the sofa in the living room to let their children suckle. At nine months they started to chew on bread rinds and were given some cooked and mashed vegetables as addition to their diet of milk. But for some reason neither Sirius nor Remus were ready to let go of the nursing just yet. It felt much too good for them still. No one tried to talk them out of it, so they just kept on as long as the children liked to take the milk.   
  
Both babies were growing fast. They sat up and crawled a bit already and if one of their fathers helped them they pulled themselves up on their feet. While Sirius was reading he usually had them in a rather big playpen right next to his armchair. A house-elf was never far to entertain them when Sirius needed to concentrate on his texts.   
  
Looking back over the year he had just passed, or most of it anyway, he thought that he couldn't believe how many books he had read. He presumed that not many people had gone through the Hogwarts library as systematically as he had. But he and Lily had worked out a few very good defences and had come up with some amazing spells, of which Remus had used a part for his wards.   
  
Returning to Hogwarts after the babies were fed they could lay them into their cribs for another nap which would last until dinner time. With nothing else to do Remus pulled Sirius into their bed for some more love-making. He fucked Sirius again, and did it three times in a row. Sirius teased him:  
  
"Feeling alpha today, are we?"   
  
But he couldn't get enough of his wolf. As soon as Remus had shown him his tongue, Sirius asked, doggy eyes in place:  
  
"Again?"  
  
"You're wearing me out!" Remus complained, but complied, grinning.  
  
"What's all that werewolf stamina good for if not to please my arse?" Sirius teased.   
  
Remus crawled over Sirius, tickled his stomach and watched amusedly how Sirius jumped up and winced. Remus laughed, followed his husband and pressed him back down on the bed. He nipped and kissed the flesh just below the navel, which made Sirius squirm some more.   
  
"Remus!" he screeched.  
  
Remus hummed a bit while he went on teasing Sirius' flesh. Sirius' hands dug into Remus' hair, steering him even further down. Within minutes he was just a squirming, squealing mass of flesh in Remus' hand. Who enjoyed it greatly. He loved to dominate Sirius, who was like a lump of soft, warm wax in his hands.   
  
"Stop it and fuck me already, love!" Sirius was able to say.   
  
"Had enough, did you?" Remus asked.  
  
"You know exactly, how much I can take! I'll never have enough of you, Moony," Sirius whined.  
  
Remus looked at him, grinned and finally got ready to plunge inside of him again. Sirius responded with a low moan, that seemingly didn't stop until Remus was already very close to his orgasm, when it rose to a steady scream. That's how Remus loved Sirius most. Defenceless against all that pleasure that washed through his body. Not able to do anything else anymore but scream. Both of them reached their climax after a few minutes more of this and slumped down on the bed in a heap of sweaty limbs, unable to move for a while.   
  
"Thank you, love! That was incredibly good," Sirius said after a while and lifted his arm to push a few strands of Remus' hair out of his face.   
  
Through the one-way silencing charm Remus heard Polaris cry.  
  
"Can you go and see what he needs? I'm out of it!" he whispered.  
  
"Yes, love, I can - once we manage to get apart here..."  
  
Sirius needed a moment to sort out which limbs belonged to his own body and sat up. He didn't bother with clothes, just got into his slippers and went over to look after the baby. Polaris was quite upset over something. He had woken up and daddy wasn't there as fast as he usually was, that scared him! Sirius gently turned him on the side and stroked soothingly over the back.  
  
"Hey love! No reason to cry here, I'm right next door and so is papa! You okay again? There, there, everything's okay."  
  
Polaris quieted down, but as soon as Sirius stood up and pulled his hand away, the baby was crying again. Sirius stayed next to him and waited patiently, gave him the pacifier and was rewarded for his patience as a few minutes later his little son was back to sleep.  
  
"That's my sweet one," Sirius whispered and left the nursery.   
  
When he returned to the bed he found Remus fast asleep. He smiled and climbed in next to his mate. He turned to Remus, pulled up the duvets and covered them both. A wink with his hand closed all the curtains. He slung his arms around the smaller man, pulled him close and whispered:  
  
"Sleep well, my love! You don't even have an idea how much I love you!"  
  
The next few months were spent between research at the Hogwarts library, missions for the Order and smaller skirmishes with Death Eaters. When Sirius and Remus were doing some shopping with Lily in Hogsmeade near the end of September they were accosted by a group of seventeen Death Eaters at once. It was the first time any of them met Sirius and Remus together. And they cried out their satisfaction of finally having stopped these two young men! Three of them immediately raised their wands to cast the deadly Avada Kedavra, but a high pitched female voice screamed at them:  
  
"Stop! Stop! You can't kill them just yet! The Dark Lord wants them alive!"   
  
The three Marauders immediately knew to whom that voice belonged. They exchanged a glance, took each other by the hand and formed a small back to back triangle to face their enemies. Then they cast Expelliarmus all at once. Eight of the Death Eaters, including Bellatrix were knocked against walls and unconscious. The remaining nine started throwing curses, but the three in the middle had set up shields quite solidly. One of them was constantly repeating the shield charm to maintain it, while the other two sent a couple of solid stunners and other curses back at their attackers. All the while they slowly turned around sideways to cover the area around. The whole 'battle' took fifteen minutes and left sixteen Death Eaters in the custody of the Ministry.   
  
Someone had called the Aurors, who found not much to do left but bind the unconscious people and take them back to the Ministry holding cells. The Hogsmeade people were still standing around and all of them applauded the young people who had defended themselves so successfully.  
  
Sirius bowed to them and grinned.   
  
"Thank you very much! See, they can be sent packing! We're going to catch that snake yet, you'll see!" he said.  
  
Then he looked around for Remus and Lily, found them unharmed and grinning as well. They grabbed each other by the hand and almost skipped on to Dervish & Banges, where they planned to look for some gadget or other.   
  
"That was brilliant! We've got Bellatrix, too! He'll be beside himself! The best thing was that the one Death Eater got away. He will suffer for the news he brings!" Lily shouted, the glee rather untypical for her, but neither Remus nor Sirius complained.  
  
"You're right! That's the icing on the cake..." Sirius confirmed and laughed.  
  
But he didn't look too good. He was quite pale and looked sick. Remus noticed and asked:  
  
"Did one of their curses hit you, Padfoot?"  
  
"No. It's rather something else, Moony. I'm afraid that I might be pregnant again, love."  
  
"What? But we've cast the spell..." Remus said.  
  
"Yeah, we did and we did it on both of us even, just to make sure. But I'm feeling the same kind of nausea I felt when I was pregnant with Vega."  
  
"Oh dear! That's soon, love."  
  
"I know! I'm sorry, Remus," Sirius said.  
  
"Nothing to be sorry about, Sirius. It takes two and we both relied on that spell to hold!"  
  
"Which one did you use?" Lily asked.  
  
"Non Gravitum," Remus replied.  
  
"Has a failure rate of about three percent, I'm afraid. You should make the potion, it's much more reliable. Though not very pleasant to brew and even worse to drink. But once you've got it down it's dead sure!" Lily explained.  
  
"Oh, that's great. Now you tell us," Sirius teased.  
  
"Do you mind it much?" Remus asked.  
  
"No, not that much, but it is a bit soon after Vega and Polaris, don't you think?"  
  
"Yes, that is true. But I'm happy anyway. It's not like I mind changing nappies, there are spells not to have to smell that..." Remus said cheerfully.  
  
Lily laughed.   
  
"You'll have to show me these, because I want a baby real soon!" she said.  
  
"You'll profit from our growing maternity experience, young lady!" Sirius promised, still pale.  
  
They were able to execute their shopping before Sirius really got sick. They were already past the gates when Sirius finally couldn't hold it. He vanished behind a few bushes and emptied his stomach in a most unpleasant way. When he came back, Remus conjured up a glass of fresh water and Sirius used it to rinse his mouth.   
  
"Eww... Thanks, love..."  
  
"You're most welcome!"  
  
"Think I need Poppy's test?" Sirius asked.  
  
Remus passed him a piece of chocolate and said:  
  
"Yes, I most certainly think you do, just to make sure..."  
  
Upon which they took their purchases to their rooms and went over to the hospital wing. They found Poppy tending to a fourth year Ravenclaw who had been hit with a curse from a Slytherin.   
  
"This looks really nasty, Elizabeth. Do you know who it was?"  
  
"I know I should know his name, but I don't. All I know is that he looked like that man over there!" she said and pointed to Sirius.  
  
"In this case it can only have been my darling little brother. Looks like his handwriting in any case. I apologise for him, young lady! He's supposed to be a noble Black, but he behaves like a bloody peasant!" Sirius replied and conjured a bouquet of flowers for the young girl.  
  
She smiled through her tears and managed to thank him.  
  
"You're most welcome! I'm really sorry for the git. If he were only a prat I wouldn't half mind, but he's fast on the way to join Voldemort, so you should watch out for him. Practice some nasty hexes, too! And remember to never ever confuse me with him, I'd be most hurt! I washed my hands off that family!" Sirius said theatrically, but Lily and Remus knew exactly that he was dead serious with most of what he had just said.  
  
"Is he serious?" Elizabeth asked Poppy.  
  
Poppy looked at Sirius for a moment and then replied:  
  
"Well, I'm quite sure he is. He is Sirius Black, by the way and the person he would not like to be confused with is Regulus Black, his younger brother."  
  
"Oh. Well, thank you, I'll mind your words, Mr. Black."  
  
While Poppy helped Elizabeth into the bed, she looked back at the three young people and asked:  
  
"And what do you want here, dears?"   
  
Sirius pointed at his stomach. Poppy cottoned on immediately and looked at them:  
  
"But you were under the spell!"  
  
"First thing that came to MY mind," Sirius said laconically.  
  
"And are you sure? It's not like you have any missing menstruations or something to tell you..."  
  
"No, I don't, but I have a pretty good other indicator. It's called morning sickness," said Sirius.  
  
Poppy laughed. "Well, come over to my office with the sample and we'll find out..."  
  
"Be right back!"  
  
Sirius vanished to the toilet and brought the little tube back to Poppy who added it to the test. A few minutes later the colour gave the pregnancy away. Poppy nodded and checked Sirius up, then she declared:  
  
"Everything's fine, Sirius, you'll give birth in May, beginning of the month I'd say."  
  
"Oh well... we'll keep the baby stuff close at hand then," Sirius sighed.  
  
"It's alright, love, I'm happy about it," Remus told him.  
  
Sirius looked at Remus and smiled. He pulled him into a hug, kissed him and said:  
  
"You always know how to cheer me up, love! Thanks! I'm okay, just don't look forward to that ugly morning sickness again."  
  
"Do I understand that?" Remus asked, sympathy blinking in his eyes.   
  
Lily looked quite content and said:  
  
"Good! I'm getting another godchild! And I hope I'll be able to give one to you soon!"   
  
"That would be great, Lily, I do think we need to gift Hogwarts with a new generation of Marauders very soon! Can't wait for Peter and Sabina get down to it, too!" Sirius said, his most mischievous glint in his eyes.   
  
"Merlin help us! I never thought of that. Vega and Polaris are two Marauders concentrated! I'm afraid they must be worse than anything!" said Poppy and was truly shocked.  
  
Sirius, Remus and even Lily laughed. They knew that the Marauders, and especially Remus, had a very special place in the heart of the matron. Even now she still fawned over Remus after his transformations.   
  
Of course they had to set up heavy protection for Peter and Sabina's wedding, too. Sabina's parents offered their home, a stately country house with a wonderful ballroom for the celebration. There were two house-elves who cooked for them and Sabina's and Peter's families had organised and prepared for the party. There were a few more guests as both their immediate families were considerably larger than James' or Lily's. But since the wedding took place indoors only it was the house and the immediate surrounding that needed to be warded and Remus had it done in three days.   
  
The party didn't remain wholly undisturbed though and the Order had to be called in to get rid of a larger group of Death Eaters who tried to breach the wards. They had not expected so many defensive forces to show up and after a short battle, the Death Eaters started to disapparate.  
  
James, Lily, Sirius and Remus had helped from behind the wards. When they returned back into the house they looked quite content with their day's work. The wards had held up beautifully, but Remus quickly went over them just to make sure.   
  
"Voldie must be quite annoyed with you by now, love!" Sirius said with a smirk.  
  
"Yes, he meets those wards of yours more and more often and they don't know how to breach them! It's almost endearing to see them trying," James confirmed, thumping Remus on the shoulders.  
  
"Thanks for the compliments, guys. I do think these wards are really quite a good piece of magic. I'm happy that people appreciate them. And even happier that they are safe behind them."  
  
"You deserve all the commendations you get, sweetie. You're doing a thumpin' good job with them," Sirius said.  
  
He looked at Remus with admiration. Remus threw him the same kind of glances back. The party returned to their dancing and for a night they forgot about the war.   
  
Peter and Sabina looked thoroughly happy. They were both working at Diagon Alley now, Sabina at her family's apothecary, where she went through all the jobs to learn the trade from scratch. They were all happy, because Remus and Sirius had brought their little ones, who were now asleep in a bed two floors up, magically protected from falling out of it. And of course the room had been magically sealed against intruders who weren't supposed to go into the room.   
  
Sirius had told them all about his new pregnancy. He sighed a bit when he told them, but more because it was such a short time after his first pregnancy. One of the guys of course joked about his boobs remaining firmly in place for a while longer. Remus rolled his eyes. His were still around as well, because they still nursed the children for breakfast and before going to sleep. It was still the easiest way to get them to sleep at night. That way they could usually pluck their sleeping babies off their breasts and lay them down in their cribs. After that they usually didn't hear a sound from them until the early morning. They planned to hold up until both children were a year old.  
  
"We hope they lose interest in being nursed before that or shortly after. But by the end of the year we'll have them off our breast. Then my body gets time to prepare for the new baby," Sirius explained.  
  
"Sounds so strange to hear you talking about that," one of Peter's brothers said.  
  
"Well, I can't hide it, now can I? So I rather explain. Carrying and giving birth to Vega and then nursing her, and sometimes Polaris, has changed me a lot, I reckon. But they make me so happy! I never thought I'd ever have a child, let alone two or more and of course I would have said that anyone's crazy who would have dared telling me I'd have a child before I was twenty. And look where I am now? I'll be twenty in a week and I'm pregnant with my second child..."  
  
"James, Peter, you'll have your work cut out if you want to catch up with those two!"  
  
"Damn, I wouldn't even try! They're two of them who can breed at the same time! Fully functioning hermaphrodites as they have become!" James exclaimed.  
  
"But you have to do a bit of work, James, we want some Marauders to be sent back to Hogwarts soon! Dear Minerva won't know what hit her when our offspring is thrown in her arms!" Sirius said with a grin.  
  
"Sure... we do hope to have a baby soon," James promised and looked over at his wife.  
  
"Yep! We're not going to wait, I'm off the potion. Stopped taking it just before we got married! We plan to clutter this world with little Potters!" Lily added.  
  
That made everyone laugh and Hope cried: "Well, you and Sabina will have to make up for Dari and I, since we won't have any children."  
  
"That makes you the ideal babysitters!" Remus declared.  
  
"And godmothers!" Sirius said.  
  
The party broke up late at night and since Remus and Sirius had their children with them, they were invited to sleep in one of the guestrooms. In the morning they had to get up fairly early, because of their little ones. They didn't linger, bid their goodbyes to Sabina's parents and returned to Hogwarts. 


	11. 11 A Moment of Quiet during the War

Title: Baby Boom! 11/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**11. A Moment of Quiet during the War**  
  
The next full moon was at the beginning of November. Remus and Sirius left their children to Lily and James and went to the Shrieking Shack as they did every month. Remus undressed and sat on the bed to await the inevitable, but it didn't happen. He looked down at the black dog residing next to him on the bed and they both guessed what that meant. No transformation - Remus must be pregnant again, too. He hid his face in his hands and shook his head.   
  
"Oh dear."  
  
Sirius transformed back immediately and caressed his mate's still totally flat belly. He beamed.  
  
"I love you, Remus. And you'll enjoy another period of no transformations..."  
  
"I can't keep that up for my whole life, Sirius! Imagine the family we'd create!"  
  
Sirius grinned.  
  
"Well, we don't need to exaggerate. I'm just happy for you that for a few months Moony will be banished into the back of your head. Not that I don't like him."  
  
"Well, I don't! Like Moony, I mean."  
  
"You don't need to like him. How does he respond to the children?"  
  
"Loves them, I think. I don't think I'd attack any of them, but I'm not about to find out."  
  
"No, neither am I."  
  
"Though the wolfsbane potion is supposed to go into final testing next year. I'd have offered to help with the testing, but when I'll be nursing another baby I obviously can't. And I sincerely hope that the contraceptive potion Lily talked about helps better than the spell!"  
  
"Maybe we just did it wrong, Remus. Maybe it has to be recast monthly or so..." Sirius suggested.  
  
"That might be, but again, I'm not about to try and find out, I'll take the safer potion."  
  
Sirius grinned.  
  
"I do want to keep fucking you without fear of having you pregnant again within only a couple of months. And even though you are nursing! That was supposed to keep a new pregnancy at bay, too, you know!" Remus said, looking at Sirius.  
  
Sirius grinned even wider.  
  
"Actually only if you have them at your breast at intervals not longer than five to six hours. Longer than that and the hormonal protection is rather gone."  
  
"Ah. That would explain it."  
  
Remus got up and dressed again. It was rather cold and since he had not sprouted a thick wolf's pelt he started to freeze. Sirius got up, too, and said:  
  
"Well, let's get back to our somewhat more comfortable abode."  
  
"Agreed!"  
  
"And I wouldn't mind a large family. We'll just need a really big house for all of the children!"  
  
Remus chuckled, while they apparated out of the house and walked back to the castle on the surface. It was a very crisp, clear November night and they could see the full moon shining over Hogwarts, almost pushing the stars out of sight. Remus looked up at it and whispered:  
  
"You don't know how this feels, to look at this icy perfection up there with my human eyes! It still amazes me."  
  
"That's good. I know you hated it..."  
  
"I don't hate it anymore. Haven't for a while. Just kind of regretted not to be able to see it just like everybody else does. And of course being governed by it the way I am. It rules my life!"  
  
"More than I ever could. Though the kids rule our lives quite a bit, too. There are so many things ruling our lives that it makes me cringe, Moony! The moon is just one of them. But there are the laws, the Ministry, our parents, our friends, our children, the war, Voldie and his idiots... no reason to moon over just one part of them all... let me take you back home and love you instead!"  
  
"Ruling..." Remus muttered, but he grinned.  
  
When the two of them showed up in their flat, Lily looked up, highly astonished. James was with her as the two of them had promised to baby-sit. Sirius smiled, because they caught their friends short of getting undressed.  
  
"You'd better head over to Lily's!" Sirius bellowed.  
  
"What are you two doing here? Don't tell me, that Moony's got his lunar calendar wrong?" James stuttered, blushing.  
  
"No, I haven't. Me not transforming can only mean one thing..."  
  
"You've done it AGAIN!" James broke out.  
  
"Looks like it. First full moon I haven't transformed, so I can't be pregnant for longer than a month. You two hop over to Lily's and start working on the next Potter generation real quick!"  
  
"No dangerous days right now. But we might have done the deed a week ago..." Lily mentioned with a smile.  
  
"Good luck!" Remus said.  
  
"Same to you, Remus. And good night!"  
  
Poppy of course confirmed the other new pregnancy and was delighted. Secretly she thought, that Remus should have a whole mass of children, if being pregnant spared him a few transformations. When Remus' parents were informed of the new grandchildren in the making her thoughts were mirrored by Richard and Venetia.  
  
"You know, I really don't mind Remus pregnant at all if it means, that he doesn't have to transform," Venetia remarked.  
  
"I think so, too, but that will become a very large family, love. Even if he allows himself a transformation free year only every two or three years."  
  
"But it will give him respite from the pain. Whenever I hear one of my female friends complaining about their monthly pains I'm tempted to tell them how that feels compared to what my son goes through every month. Twice! Rather let them have a monstrous family. It's not like the Blacks are poor and no matter what Sirius' parents want, he's their legal heir. Unless he dies he inherits. Would make for a nice new branch of Blacks, don't you think?"  
  
Richard smirked.  
  
"Leda Black must be seething even more than her husband. He's quite under her regiment I hear. Wouldn't budge if she ordered him to sit still..."  
  
Venetia laughed.  
  
"Serves him right for choosing a woman sixteen years older than him, just because his parents thought there was no other spouse pure-blooded enough for their oh so pure-blooded son."  
  
"As long as she brought the desired heir forth she could be as ugly as the desert Gobi and still be perfect for their ways of thinking. Now she has a son with her own rather strong-minded character who won't practice dark arts and one that's following her wishes, but is more of the small-minded sort like her husband. Strange, how genes work, isn't it? I can't but wonder, how our grand-children turn out."  
  
"Genetics are strong, my love, but the socialising part is just as strong. Remus and Sirius both love their children, enough to be strict with them and dote on them at the same time. Just watch them, they're like mother-hens, both of them! It's so sweet to see. I'm sure that their children will turn out well. If parents are there for their children without overpowering them or become overly protective of them they usually become normal people. Remus and Sirius want them down-to-earth, but fun loving, curious and interested in things to discover. Sirius emphasized the term 'discover' the other day and said, he'd do that to cover up the term 'to learn', which would sound too goody-good to those of their children who would get more of his temperament. I thought that was pretty clever. 'Find out' and 'discover' arouse much more curiosity than 'learn'. Tell them to learn something and they will think it's work. Allow them to discover something and it will be an adventure. Clever son-in-law I have! I hope he succeeds with this tactic. Could almost be a Ravenclaw!"  
  
Richard laughed at that. He thought about it for a moment and then said:  
  
"You know, I think, Sirius is extremely afraid of becoming a bad parent. And he doesn't want to become that. I'm sure he'll do well and Remus is there with him all the way. Their children will have a good part of our son in them, because that wolf inside of Remus makes him damn strong. Very interesting that it doesn't seem to become hereditary, there's not the slightest bit of it in Vega and Polaris."  
  
"No, there isn't. They actually remind me a lot of ours. Vega has something of Julia, don't you think? She'll be a mischievous girl."  
  
The growing family Black-Lupin knew nothing about their grandparents' musings, but the two elder Lupins were very right in all of their assessments. Remus watched over Sirius, because Sirius needed him to until he felt certain that he wouldn't become a parent like his own parents. He knew of the inadequacies of his father's. He knew that his sharp intellect came from his mother, even though she looked awful and totally degenerated. Somehow in her case it did not affect the intellect, only the sanity and the body. Sirius was disgusted whenever he had to get into contact with her. On the other hand he considered himself extremely lucky to have the handsome appearance of his father's and his mother's brain. He often thought it could have turned out the other way.   
  
In between further skirmishes with Death Eaters and researching Lily informed her friends and family that she had caught the 'bug', too and that she would have a baby by the end of July. James was completely out of it and trembled of fear to have this responsibility for a child of their own, but at the same time he was completely thrilled and couldn't wait. Remus and Sirius congratulated them the first and of course promised to let them get more training with their own newly born babies to get some routine in the care of tiny humans.   
  
"You two will be godfathers, won't you?" Lily and James asked their closest friends.  
  
"Of course we will! You don't even have to ask!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
He looked good, but now he started to show his pregnancy through his robes and was growing rounder. He had passed the stage of the morning sickness and by Christmas he felt perfectly fine. They decided to celebrate it together at the Lupins' fairly large home. Martha and Oliver Potter were invited as well and since all of the other Lupin children were there with their families it was quite an event. Richard and Venetia had acquired a house-elf for the occasion as their Christmas present to each other. A young elf named Billy had taken over the regiment in the Lupin house and they were thrilled how the little creature took off. They were treating her very kindly and within two days around the Lupin grandchildren Billy looked at them as her primary masters and tended to them better than any nanny could. She did all the cooking, but Venetia insisted on doing the few household spells that needed to be done to clean the house, make the beds and so on.   
  
"As soon as Christmas is over and all our guests leave you can take over the house as well, Billy. That will give me more time for other things, since Rupert and Rowland are both still at Hogwarts. We don't think you should be a slave, you're a worthy person of your own. Okay?"  
  
"Mistress commands, I is following her wishes. I is doing the cooking, Madam!"  
  
"Very good. Do you accept some teaching in how I would like the cooking done?"  
  
"Yes, Madam."  
  
Venetia instructed her new house-elf how she liked things done in the kitchen and Billy complied in everything she was told. Within days she was loved by everyone in the house and was happy to serve such a nice family. Not even Rupert or Rowland teased her or had unreasonable demands.  
  
It was Vega's and Polaris' second Christmas, but the last time they had been so tiny they hadn't noticed anything of it. Now though they noticed that a lot of preparations were going on and had to be kept away from the big Christmas tree, which their fathers were decorating magically with their sisters and brothers-in-law. Roxanne's twins were getting in the way, too, which made them all laugh, but it was a bit aggravating, so Sirius drew a magical line on the floor that the children were unable to cross. It amused the adults greatly how the little ones tried to come closer and hit on a cushioned barrier that wouldn't let them pass. Vega was so frustrated that she stopped crawling, sat on her behind and started bawling so loud that everyone else in the house came running to see what was wrong.   
  
"Why is that child screaming at the top of her voice?" Venetia asked sternly.  
  
Sirius calmly crouched down and lifted his little daughter up. He sat down with her, held her tightly and kissed her, soothed her, and once she stopped crying he said:  
  
"I'm really sorry, my little darling, but see that tree is a bit dangerous to you, Polaris and your cousins. You don't want it to fall on top of you, love. That's why you must stay out. Tomorrow morning you can get closer again."  
  
There were still a few sobs from Vega, but the little one slowly calmed down. Finally she stopped trying to get to the people inside of the ring around the tree. Venetia retreated to the kitchen with a smile. 'Sirius has his children well in his hands,' she thought contentedly.  
  
Remus was happy, too. Sirius was still up on the barricades in a matter of seconds if something irked him, but so far he had kept the nerves when the something that irked him were his children. He gave Sirius a quick kiss on the cheek and smiled. They soon finished the decorations in the living room and went on to decorate the hall and staircase up to the other floors. And finally they added special little wreaths, wrapped in red and green ribbons and filled with a thick red candle on the bedside tables in all the rooms.  
  
Every single room would be occupied. All young parents took their children into their own rooms to free enough space for the guests to sleep over on Christmas Eve and onto Boxing Day. Sirius had done some amazing transfigurations to have enough beds ready. The guests, Lily and James, Martha and Oliver and all the remaining older Lupin children arrived in the course of the afternoon of Christmas Eve. They were welcomed with an aperitif for the adults, sweets and hot chocolate for the children.   
  
With the wards securely in place they were able to enjoy a few days of absolute peace and since there were no Death Eater attacks in the outside world either, the dark times were left outside. Owls with gifts to family and friends not with them had been sent a few days ago and lots of them had shown up at the kitchen window where the Lupins usually received their mail. There was a huge pile of colourfully wrapped gifts under the tree, which glimmered in silver and white baubles, tinsel, fairy lights and even the candles were silver and white. Remus' part were little silvery stars all over the tree and Rupert had been allowed to add the top. It was a silver fairy with wonderful fragile wings and silver hair.   
  
With five children between one and four years it was a lively Christmas celebration. Luckily the children didn't get out of their beds earlier than usual, so their parents got up normally and assembled the family in the living room again, where the candles were burning on the tree and otherwise the light had been turned off. They opened their gifts. Sirius sat on the floor, his two toddlers next to him and handed them each a gift. The children needed help to do that, which he provided, but they discovered then and there that opening gifts brought forward exciting surprises. There were gifts from their fathers, their grandparents, their godparents, aunts and uncles. What surprised Sirius most was that there was something for the children from his mother. Even though he wasn't entirely happy with her choice of sending them something typically Black: small pure silver spoons with the Black family crest. He sighed. It wasn't like his mother didn't know that his mate was a werewolf and couldn't touch those spoons, because he was allergic to silver. He wondered about his mother's motivation to do that.   
  
"I bet she's had Kreacher pack up the gift and send it," he muttered.  
  
Remus sat close to him, legs crossed, Polaris on his lap. The boy still had the spoon in his hands and Remus said to him:  
  
"I'll have to put this away for a while, Polaris, because I can't touch it."  
  
As soon as the boy lost interest and dropped the spoon, Sirius picked it up and banished the two spoons to the kitchen. He wasn't really angry, it was more than a surprise his mother had even thought of her grandchildren. After all she didn't have to, he hadn't even told her about them; she had been informed about their existance by Regulus. Sirius had received a Howler for that but hadn't really cared. He had considered of returning with another Howler to complain about hers waking and terrifying his children, but had not done so. Remus had been glad about that, because he didn't want his Sirius dropping down to the same level as his mother. That was the motivation for Sirius to just let it go.  
  
After the larger part of the guests had left the Lupin home they returned all the rooms to what they had been before Christmas. Sirius and Remus stayed for another few days until after the start of the new year. On New Year's Day they both thought about the events of the past year and remembered what had been important for them.   
  
"Hope and James becoming Aurors," Remus said.  
  
"Dari becoming a journalist for the Daily Prophet," Sirius contributed.  
  
"That's a good one, I hope she will be able to report things that are actually true," Remus said.  
  
"So do I. But she's a tough girl, she's doing the right things."  
  
"All of our friends joining the Order. The weddings. Peter doing well in his job."  
  
"Lots of good things actually..." Sirius summarised.  
  
"Yes, amazing, isn't it? We're in the middle of a war and still life goes on as it always has..." Remus mused.  
  
"That's a bit how it was through World War Two and the Grindelwald Dark Days," Richard threw in.  
  
"I can imagine. Luckily there's not another huge Muggle war going on interfering with ours!" Sirius said.  
  
"There's enough of them going on. I mean, look what happened in Iran. Those Muggle hostages held in Teheran..." Venetia said.  
  
"And there's the conflict between China and Vietnam, too," Sirius demonstrated his knowledge about the Muggle news.  
  
"On the other hand there's the treaty signed between Israel and Egypt," Remus remarked.  
  
"But still plenty going on, just far enough that it doesn't really concern us here," Richard said.   
  
"All in all it wasn't such a bad year, now was it?" Sirius asked.  
  
"No, for us it wasn't. We didn't earn very much money, but there was no real need..."  
  
"But still. You finally have your own Gringotts vault and it isn't empty. That's something. And I don't mind to live at Hogwarts for a while."  
  
Remus quieted and looked at his children napping near them on a thick blanket. Then he said passionately:  
  
"I still hate it that so many decisions concerning our lives we ought to make now have to wait until we get rid of Voldemort! That war is ruling our lives even worse than the bloody full moon!"  
  
It didn't happen often that Remus showed such despair. Sirius pulled him close. Remus turned and sat in his mate's lap, embraced him and rested his face on Sirius' shoulder. Sirius stroked over his head and soothed him:  
  
"One day soon, love! We have annoyed him a pretty bit by now, he'll have to come forth soon or he'll lose more of his Death Eaters. I believe that the Death Eaters without their master will be rather easy to handle. He's the whole problem, he's hiding out and that's what is making this so difficult. We've been able to beat them so often the past year. And you know how much the two of us have contributed to that. Even the Aurors are glad to profit from our research."  
  
Remus nodded, but still remained where he was. Richard and Venetia watched their two beloved sons and Richard added:  
  
"It's very true what you say, Sirius. Barty comes up with ideas to allow the Aurors to use Unforgivables, but I prefer your clever schemes in using altered and new or very ancient spells much better. I know he heads the Auror Division, but I do have some influence there, too, being the head of the complete department. It's hard to show Barty that he's lowering us down to the ways of the Death Eaters. On the other hand we have much that should keep our hopes up. There are the reports of the many people with your wards on their houses, Remus. They can at least sleep at night with much less fear. And that alone is worth a lot, because by daylight they are ready to pick up their lives and the fight again. Voldemort tries to invoke fear wherever he can and he succeeds with many people. But that's for a good part because of the surprise attacks on unsuspecting people at night. That's why he's so mad at you two. You have often warded off houses he has planned to attack. Thanks to Peter for a good part, too. He's done very good work."  
  
And they continued to do good work. Dumbledore had several spies, one of them he never mentioned by name even to Sirius and Remus, but that spy only told Dumbledore of the secret meetings of Voldemort's inner circle and that was when Peter came to play. He could get into any warded off area simply by transforming into the rat. And by now he was far beyond the state of being afraid of discovery. He was cunning enough in his rat form and the only thing slightly unusual about him was that he always carried along a small piece of wood of some sort, which was enchanted with the recording spell. If he didn't find a good enough spot to hide he dropped the wood and later on simply placed his memories of the event in Dumbledore's Pensieve.   
  
Almost every scheme Voldemort brought up in such meetings was thus known to Dumbledore. Voldemort repeatedly questioned his Death Eaters whether they had revealed anything to the Ministry or the Order of the Phoenix, but he couldn't find out anything, because none of them had given any secrets away. His methods of questiong became more and more violent. He was getting angrier every day. Magical artefacts or books he was after vanished right under his nose or people he planned to eliminate, were protected so well that it was impossible to get to them.   
  
In February he finally booked a bit of a 'success' again and that was killing a group of very seasoned Aurors, the Bones and Prewetts. The Bones family mourned the loss of three siblings, two brothers and a sister, who had all been Aurors and had been very successful in bringing down many Death Eaters in the past three years. All three of them were already grandparents. The Prewetts were two brothers, who had been working as a team with the Bones siblings for six years. They were a bit younger, but both had been Aurors since shortly after Grindelwald's downfall. Both left a wife, children and grandchildren.  
  
The magical community mourned them and sadly this event allowed Barty Crouch to finally get the Wizengamot's vote to allow certain Aurors to use Imperius and Avada Kedavra if nothing else worked against the Death Eaters.   
  
But several minor Death Eaters were caught and tried in the next months. Moody had to finally break down and use Avada Kedavra when he tried to bring down Evan Rosier, one of Snape's old class mates. He kept a very ugly reminder in his face of that fight. And he hated himself for having to kill the man. Alastor Moody always tried to bring in suspects to be tried and sent to Azkaban instead of killing them. He was glad that Cruciatus had been completely banned and was not allowed under any circumstances. 


	12. 12 Hogwarts under Attack

Title: Baby Boom! 12/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
The 'battle' isn't very realistic, mainly because I think that there can't have been very many open battles in that first Voldemort war. I think, this war must have drawn its terror through the subtlety with which everything took place - general fear, people singled out and attacked at night, disappearances and the likes, but I can't imagine that Voldemort ever attacked so openly... still I'm going with this:  
  
**12. Hogwarts under Attack**  
  
Then came the day when Dumbledore's spy didn't tell him about a meeting. And through that meeting an attack on Hogwarts was planned. Voldemort would be partaking in the attack himself for once and it was to take place on the last night of March.   
  
"We'll have the rogue Dementors and three giants to our aid. I want every single Death Eater out there to join us in that attack. That would be 638 and if even one is missing I shall be very angry!"  
  
Dumbledore's spy was finally able to tell him about the date of the attack a week before. That gave Dumbledore a week to summon the Order and give Richard Lupin an information to order Crouch to send half of his Aurors to Hogwarts. Dumbledore organised the students' security by relegating all of them into an area in the dungeons right in the centre of the castle, which the house-elves had prepared in the days before the attack. Right after dinner on the day of the battle all students were sent to this room except the sixth and seventh years, who were held back and asked if they were prepared to help defending the castle. Many of the Ravenclaws, some Slytherins, all of the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs were at the front to help. All others were led down to join the other students and support the fifth year prefects.   
  
Remus and Sirius wanted to fight, but Sirius was in his seventh month, so he was ordered to join Poppy Pomfrey and help at the hospital wing, and Remus would not be in the forefront of the battle either. But both would be coming out if a direct encounter with Voldemort was possible as their spells cast together were more powerful than anything Dumbledore himself had ever produced.   
  
It was a tough fight. The intruders came by night and while it wasn't exactly difficult to come to the grounds of Hogwarts it was impossible for them to enter the castle, as the wards that centuries of headmasters and headmistresses and their helpers had set up held strong.   
  
Not even the giants were any help. They didn't even get close to the castle, because knowing that there would be giants on the battlefield a group of Aurors had been stationed around the castle on brooms and covered with strong Disillusionment charms. They had nothing else to do at first but wait for the giants and eliminate them in any way possible long before the giants even got close. And that meant to kill them.  
  
Nothing else to do still demanded an awful lot. The Aurors waited and feared their job. The giants had been sent out as the first line of attack.   
  
Voldemort hoped that they would get through and cause enough damage on the castle walls that the Dementors and Death Eaters might be able to get in after them. He himself arrived near the Shrieking Shack just very shortly before the giants were supposed to start their destructive march onto Hogwarts. Since the Shack stood on a hill it was an excellent place to see over to the castle. He immediately noticed that the whole of Hogwarts and the grounds almost to the edge of the Forbidden Forest was flooded with light. A fact that made him swear quite creatively.  
  
"Betrayed! Again! Who is the traitor? I will find you and if I do you are going to die a very slow and painful death! Where are the giants now? Does anything work out here?" Voldemort screamed and looked around some of the people around him.   
  
They were all masked, so none of them was able to see the sheepish faces of the others. But underneath their masks each and everyone of them was shocked and embarrassed and very, very worried. They all knew they had not passed on any secrets. All but one. Who was very glad for the mask right now.   
  
The giants turned up on time and went through the forest, but to his horror Voldemort had to see that they started to flail their arms at something he couldn't see.  
  
Of course the Aurors were there and started throwing hexes at the giants in groups of five. But it took at least five of them to take one of the giants down, so they quickly assembled and attacked the giant in front, bringing him down with a collective Avada Kedavra. The giant broke down, falling back and hindering the man behind him, whose grunts rather sounded like yells in the ears of the Aurors, who attacked the next and finally the third giant. On their brooms they could react to every movement of the giants. Dumbledore's most important first line of defence had worked successfully.   
  
"If Voldemort knows anything about the wards around Hogwarts he goes home with his Death Eaters now," Moody grunted to Remus.   
  
"He should..."  
  
They were waiting on the South Tower, out of the light, which had been charmed on the outside of the walls of Hogwarts on about thirty metres height. From there the light shone over the grounds on all sides and on all towers there were people waiting for the Death Eaters. Of course Voldemort knew now that they must be ready at Hogwarts. But he still tried by sending the Dementors ahead. At least two hundred of them slowly glided across the grounds from all sides. Dumbledore ordered everyone who was able to cast Patronus charms to send out theirs and a lot of them were charging at the Dementors. Remus quickly sent for Sirius, who came up to the South Tower within minutes.  
  
"We need to cast a Patronus together, love!"   
  
"With pleasure, my dear!"   
  
Sirius and Remus went to the highest tower in the school, the Astronomy Tower to cast their Patronus. They didn't cry it out loud and they didn't need to hurry, as the Dementors were far enough away from them, they couldn't really feel them. The good thing was that they could still fight them. Remus said:  
  
"What's your memory, love?"  
  
"The moment, Vega landed on my belly," Sirius said without thinking.   
  
Remus smiled and replied:  
  
"And I was going to suggest the same - feeling Polaris on my skin just after he was born. On three then?"   
  
They held each other by the hand.  
  
"On three! One, two, three! Expecto Patronum!"  
  
Remus had cast his Patronus at the same time and both watched as two giant animals broke from their wands, a huge silvery dog and an equally huge wolf. Both animals charged down the tower, over the grounds and broke into the ranks of the Dementors, sending them packing, but the Death Eaters were able to turn them back to the castle again. New Patroni were sent from the castle, including another pair of the wolf and dog from the Astronomy Tower. This was repeated about three times, then Remus lost patience.  
  
"Come along, Sirius, we go back to Dumbledore. I want to try out a theory of mine."  
  
"Okay. Let's go."  
  
They returned to the South Tower, where Remus said:  
  
"Have the others continue to send Patronus charms, but let some come closer here, I want to see if it's true that the Dementors can be burned. I know that they are bred practically from decayed flesh, stabilised and mobilised, so it must be possible to destroy them. I want to try with fire."  
  
"That's not a bad idea, we watch out and send them away again with more Patroni. It's good for us to be up here, they can't get into the castle and they can't climb, we're so far away that it's not too bad being around them."  
  
"That's our advantage. Are the Slytherin students who are sympathetic under control?"  
  
"Absolutely. The students are all locked in and the charms are set that they can only be reversed from the outside of the doors. In other words, even if the students know the counter charms they won't help them. Filius has done excellent work there."  
  
"Very well."  
  
Dumbledore called the other towers through two-way mirrors and informed them to keep throwing Patroni onto the Dementors. But there were none from his end. Several Dementors eagerly came closer and when they were only a few metres away from the castle walls Remus sent a common Incendio charm down at the first one. The Dementor's cloak took the fire and within moments the creature stood in flames. Moody and Sirius immediately attacked other Dementors with the same charm and saw that the result was good, because Remus' Dementor was already nothing but ash. Upon that Dumbledore gave order to let all the Dementors come close and finish them off this way.   
  
On the other hill Voldemort was reaching the maximum of his rage. He fumed and ranted, but it didn't help him and when he finally heard Dumbledore's voice, amplified by the Sonorus charm he almost exploded in rage.  
  
The voice was loud, but calm and gentle.  
  
"Do give up, Tom. You know that you cannot get through here. Hogwarts will always remain to be a haven of learning and we do not take kindly to being attacked. Attack us and you might even be sorry, because you will lose. We are prepared to receive you and there is not a millimetre of this castle that is not protected against your entrance."  
  
For a moment it seemed that the Light side would win because the evil Dark Lord was almost exploding. He jumped at the voice of his old teacher. He fumed even more and in his blind rage he sent out his Death Eaters to get into this castle or die at his hands. He only kept his inner circle back.  
  
The Death Eaters were doomed. They had to attack, their master wanted it so, but even those who were able to cast decent Disillusionment charms didn't get very far. On the grounds were charms to counter these spells and the area was flooded in light. Dumbledore's order was clear:  
  
"Do not kill them. Carefully choose your goals and stun them. Then bind them. Repeat until they are all stunned. I would like to isolate Voldemort."  
  
There were less people defending the castle than attacking Death Eaters, but they were organised. Voldemort had assembled all of his terrorists and they had to openly attack the castle. The result was that the defenders could pick their objects and mow down one by one. The stunners came in such masses that the Death Eaters didn't have time to enervate their comrades and so they all went down. Behind the main doors Aurors were ready to go out and pluck the bound and stunned people and take them to the Great Hall. As soon as an area was quite clear they went to work, levitating the stunned Death Eaters inside, disarming them and binding them properly so they couldn't move anymore.  
  
Sirius looked down from the tower and said:  
  
"Let's see, if we can't get him out there. He probably still has his inner circle around himself. I'll taunt him for a bit if you let me, Albus."  
  
"I am not sure that this is a really good tactic, but since his Death Eaters are now mostly out of the picture I think you can have some fun with Voldemort," Dumbledore said with a smile.  
  
Sirius cast Sonorus on his throat and his deep voice boomed over the grounds:  
  
"Voldemort! If you aren't a bloody coward show yourself and stand up for yourself!"  
  
There was no reply. That pleased Sirius, because he went on:  
  
"You can see that we got your Death Eaters and those we haven't got are disapparating faster than you can say attack! They must be even bigger cowards than you are!"  
  
Still no reply but Voldemort was seething. And then Sirius hit the nerve:  
  
"Your ability to lead an army is slightly less efficient than your ability to be cruel, Voldemort! Where are your legions now? They are very good at cowardly attacks on innocent and defenceless people, but it's a lot easier to torture and kill little children than it is to stand up to grown up and trained fighters, isn't it?"  
  
This was the final straw. Voldemort cast the Sonorus himself and screeched:  
  
"Who are you? Who dares to insult the Dark Lord like this?"  
  
Sirius' eyes glinted. That was to his taste and he gladly told Voldemort off.  
  
"Take three guesses, Voldie-dear. It's one who was asked to become your follower by his parents and who refused. Because I would never ever lower myself to your level, Voldemort. I rather enjoy my Muggle and Muggle-born friends, thank you very much! I rather like my half-breed mate and I'd kill you a dozen times over if you'd dare to endanger him."  
  
"BLACK! Let me see you and shred you to pieces! Come out and duel me, you... you... I'll tear you up and even if you come with that Lupin creature, you'll lie dead at my feet in a minute!!!"  
  
"You want us to duel you? Fine, Voldemort, we're there! In the grounds, in the open where everyone can see us! You'll not stand the point of a chance, so better beware!"  
  
"Sirius! You're pregnant! Both of you! You can't go out there and duel him!" Dumbledore hissed.  
  
Sirius took the Sonorus charm down.  
  
"Yes, I think, we can. We give him a clear warning and either we succeed in killing him or he'll flee. I'm quite sure that once he's been at the end of our first two or three spells he'll get out of here."  
  
"And that would be a nice headline in the Prophet, Albus. People would know that he's not invincible," Remus confirmed.  
  
"He's thrown the gauntlet, I'm ready to throw mine down as well. We have to do it."  
  
Dumbledore sighed.  
  
"You are not only playing with your own life now. You are responsible for the two lives you carry and the two you've already created..." James cried.  
  
"Exactly. And we're not ready to waste them. They give us extra strength. I'm quite sure this will not last long. We have some pretty good strategies. Like Remus can conjure slabs of stone to hold off his Avada Kedavra spells..."  
  
"That's the only reason why I let you go out there," Dumbledore decided, "Because I've seen these slabs."  
  
Sirius and Remus were let out of the main door. They walked to meet the Dark Lord, or should one say waddled? Sirius, as tall as he was, showed his pregnant belly prominently through the robes he wore and Remus, though almost two months less far, started to show very well, too. Neither tried to hide the fact.  
  
Voldemort was coming at them quickly. He thought he would finally eliminate two of the most annoying of his enemies, the two who did much of their damage with their wards and with their research. But he didn't know just how strong the two were in duelling. When he saw their obvious condition he started to taunt them:  
  
"Oh, so you want to get rid of the things growing inside of you?"  
  
"Shut up, Voldemort and get ready to die!" Sirius replied, rather annoyingly calm.  
  
"You can't kill me, Black! No one can! Bow!"   
  
"Will you? Rather get to the point, Voldemort. You know nothing about honour, because you haven't any."  
  
About ten metres apart they stood. Remus kept to Sirius' left side, because they would cast their spells connected by their hands and used their connected hands to cast most of the spells wandless. They had no scruples for fighting Voldemort two against one, the man was simply too dangerous to the peace in the wizarding world to be let off the hook. If they could they would kill him tonight. Though they had prepared a few spells that were killing through other means than Avada Kedavra. Spells they had kept to themselves, but practiced with and without their wands.  
  
Voldemort immediately started casting the killing curse, but Remus steadfastly brought up slabs of granite to catch the spells, while Sirius used regular duelling spells from Expelliarmus to Stupefy, but gradually after a few minutes he threatened Voldemort with flying knives. Voldemort was hit by a swarm of them and of course they were so sharp they injured him quite badly.   
  
Up on the tower there were cheers for Sirius and Remus and lots of people taunted and verbally attacked Voldemort. James and Peter were the rowdiest and threw some pretty ugly insults at the Dark Lord's head.   
  
Sirius was just going to crown his work with an Incendio spell when Voldemort disapparated right from the grounds at Hogwarts. Dumbledore had lifted the anti-apparition wards to give Remus and Sirius the opportunity to apparate into the castle if need should be.  
  
Seeing their master disapparating, his remaining Death Eaters followed suit. Remus and Sirius looked around. They looked up to the South Tower and apparated there, then Dumbledore reset the anti-apparition wards immediately.   
  
"Well done, you two. I would not have let you go alone, Sirius, but together with Remus you will be very hard to beat. And now he knows what to expect. Those flying knives were quite impressive," Dumbledore commented.   
  
Several people had taken photos of the duel, which wasn't really a duel at all. Sirius was quite happy with his evening's work.  
  
"Thank you, Professor! All that waiting and training paid off, don't you think? It was good to have a little something to do finally! Now I gladly return to my nursery and the library..."  
  
Everyone around him hooted and roared with laughter.   
  
"Voldemort driven off the battlefield by two pregnant men! Isn't that just THE biggest joke of the war?" someone shouted.  
  
"And the thing even asked for them both! What an idiot he can be!"  
  
"I really liked your taunt with his inability to lead troops in battle, Sirius! That was great!" Lily cried.  
  
All in all they were all very relieved. A full attack on the castle's defences had gone by and there was not a single scratch on anything or anyone. Voldemort had literally run against a wall. And what was worse he had left the battlefield ridiculed. He still fumed and raged when he met his Death Eaters again. And he let them pay for it. All of the ones close to him were punished with heavy doses of Cruciatus.  
  
Then Voldemort had them all turn up a few days later and served them stolen Veritaserum. He did find his traitor and he also thought he found his spy. The man was tortured with Cruciatus until he died. It took a long time, but finally after several hours his heart couldn't take the pain anymore and gave in. Voldemort burned him on the spot and whoever mentioned his name again in Voldemort's company was tortured, too.  
  
The biggest damage was the loss of most of Voldemort's followers. Dumbledore was sorry to see the count. About half of the people were not British, but those who were had almost all passed Hogwarts, most of them former Slytherins, but there were only too many from the other houses. Dumbledore entered the Great Hall when the first of them started to recover from the stunners. All of them had been disarmed and all of them were still under a full body bind.   
  
It took the Aurors all night to take the prisoners to Azkaban. They would be kept there until their cases were tried. For the Light side this was the most important battle in this war. With one strike they had taken out most of the Dark Lord's active followers. The Daily Prophet brought out a special edition with all of it and the front page featured the best picture of Sirius throwing the knives at Voldemort, who staggered backwards on the photo, unable to get away from the knives until he disapparated.  
  
A reporter showed up and interviewed Dumbledore and then Sirius and Remus. Pictures of the two and their two children turned up in the next edition of Witch Weekly. Sirius and Remus hardly ever lived down all the letters to the editors of the two publications that stated how cute the two of them looked feeding their children porridge at breakfast.  
  
"Oh, stuff it already, people! I'm NOT cute!" Remus cried, frustrated.  
  
But the fact that he had chosen the moment for his explosion to coincide with his changing Vega's nappy, didn't really help to make that point clear.   
  
The Death Eaters were expected by most to lick their wounds and take some time to regroup, but Dumbledore suspected that Voldemort would probably strike somewhere smaller just to show to the public that he was still there. So Dumbledore stayed attentive. He planted an article through Dari in the Prophet in which he stated that everyone should remain very alert. Voldemort was wounded, but not deathly injured. He would have to show his grip on everyone by hitting somewhere and it would probably be somewhere unexpected.   
  
And indeed he struck at a place where no one expected him to except for the Aurors and the Order. Though there were quite a lot of Aurors at each Quidditch match he chose to attack a game between the Ballycastle Bats and the Wimbourne Wasps. Both were extremely popular teams, so there were always masses of spectators. The Ministry didn't want to stop the Quidditch league, because they felt that people should live as normal as they could, even in times of war. But there were usually not more than three matches on one day, because for each match it took twenty Aurors. Strict anti-apparition wards were set onto the stadiums. People could apparate out at the end of the game, but no one could apparate in or out as long as the game took place. The wards were set up one day prior to a game. It was a rule that was applied on any regular Quidditch game to ensure that only people with valid tickets got into the stadiums.   
  
The attack was launched in late April, on a beautiful day, because good weather would guarantee lots of spectators. The Wimbourne stadium was packed with several thousand people. As an added point of interest was the fact that the Bats would play for the league championship, so many fans came along with their team from Ireland. No one knew that there were several of Voldemort's remaining Death Eaters in the audience, waiting for a few 'bombs' to explode. The bombs were poisonous snakes, trained by Voldemort to attack humans. They were told to hang on to the Death Eaters and would be given a signal to sneak from their holders' arms into the pack of people around them. They were to bite as many people as they could and start a panic.   
  
Since Dumbledore was out of the spy inside of the Death Eater ranks he didn't know where they would strike. He placed Order members in all public events, the Quidditch matches, too, where they supported the Aurors.   
  
The match started on time at one in the afternoon. Everyone's focus was on the game when after half an hour the snakes were let loose. Small snakes could not do too much of a damage in terms of poisoning people, because they could bite two, maybe three people before their poison ran out, but they could easily cause a panic. Which set in only moments after people discovered the little beasts who had spent their poison quickly onto several victims.   
  
With the anti-apparition wards still firmly in place people panicked and started to move to the exits. The snakes had been trampled to death after only a few minutes, but the panic was not to be stopped as easily. Children were falling off the balustrades. Some people pushed others out of the way who then fell down to the pitch. But when the stadium speaker finally spoke up he was able to stop everyone:  
  
"STOP! STOP! Do NOT move, please! Everyone please stand still exactly where you are! It seems that a couple of small snakes have bitten some people, but please! They have spent their poison, please stand still, so not more damage can be done! Healers, please rush to aid those who need it! We will not lift the anti-apparition wards to find the people who let those snakes loose! Please, everyone, stay where you are and, if you can, return to your seats! Help those who are injured or give us signs where someone has been bitten..."  
  
The stadium speaker was the hero of the day. He was able to halt the mass of people in movement, to get them to sit down again, so that everything could be sorted out. The game was interrupted, but the speaker announced that it would resume as soon as everyone injured or killed and their escorts were taken care of. All information the speaker got he passed on immediately. Not much later it became clear that the game could not be resumed, but the speaker promised that everyone would receive new tickets for the re-match.  
  
"We have blocked all exits. No one can come in or go out uncontrolled. The Aurors are searching the stadium, please grant them access around your seating areas, thank you! Remember that we cannot let these attacks rule our lives, we have to move together and show them that they are not wanted! I know it is hard to trust, but today we all stick together and help each other!"  
  
The speaker turned out to be a member of the Order of the Phoenix and he took the chance to stand up and say his piece about the Death Eaters. The Aurors took their time, but by working from one end through the oval stadium in both directions and meeting again at the end they caught at least three of the people who were responsible for the attack.   
  
Sirius read the Daily Prophet the next day:  
  
"An attack at the Quidditch league championship match between the Wimbourne Wasps and the Ballycastle Bats yesterday led to sixteen dead and seventy-two injured. All injured people were out of the hospital by midnight.   
  
A panic, caused by a few snakes let loose by Death Eaters almost led to a disaster. Thanks to Ed Simpson, the stadium's speaker, and his courageous coaching through the loudspeakers a worse outcome could be prevented. Simpson, a 46 years old wizard who acted as speaker for Quidditch matches since shortly after leaving Hogwarts and one of the best known savants of the British Quidditch league, held up the morale through his verbal coaching for hours on end. He was taken to recuperate after the stadium was finally cleared shortly before midnight.   
  
It seems that the Death Eaters calculated with the stadium's responsible authorities to lift the anti-apparition wards to allow those people with apparition licenses to leave the stadium immediately. But the authorities, under the direction of the Aurors watching over the game, decided to stick to the wards and to block every exit or entrance to the site.   
  
Three Death Eaters were captured. They were recognised by the Dark Mark tattoos they wear on their left forearms. It is unknown how many other Death Eaters were present and were able to get out.   
  
The match will be repeated next Friday, 26th April at the same stadium. All ticket holders are free to use them again. Even damaged tickets are still valid, as long as they show the date or the pairing of the match."  
  
Sirius put the paper down and looked up at Remus.  
  
"So Albus was right as we thought he would be. He needed to set a mark..."  
  
"Not altogether very successful though, don't you think?" Remus replied.  
  
"No, but a mark nevertheless. Now he's probably going to sit back for a while and lick wounds. We've greatly reduced his forces for the moment. It will be harder to find more followers now. Especially since we ridiculed him," Sirius said.  
  
"I think so, too. We have some time for you little ones! And your soon to be expected siblings. After which stars do we name the next batch?" Remus asked cheerfully.  
  
The weather became a bit more friendly now, there was more sun, but it was still quite cold. Remus and Sirius took the children out to the grounds to play with them. They visited Hagrid in his cabin on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. They read them stories and looked at picture books with them. And Sirius prepared for the birth. 


	13. 13 Babies Left and Right!

Title: Baby Boom! 13/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**13. Babies left and right  
**  
Sirius was a bit more scared of this birth than before the first one. Now he knew what awaited him and he tried to get ready for it, but to already know the feeling frightened him. At least before the event took place.  
  
The baby took some time, but was finally born on the sixth of May. Sirius felt the first waves of pain only slightly early in the afternoon. The contractions grew in intensity over the course of the afternoon and the intervals reached five minutes after dinner time. Remus had called Poppy over and Sirius dropped his final clothes, stayed on his bed and just let the waves of pain roll over his body. He was doing quite well, rather getting tired, but concentrated. But from about eight until the baby was out he was really under a heavy dose of pain, and he screamed an awful lot. James had taken the two children over to his room, while Lily stayed with Remus and Sirius. Sirius worked hard, he pressed the baby out and finally, after eight hours little Alya was there, shrivelled and covered with the whitish fluid that had protected her skin in the water. Poppy first gave her to Sirius, who welcomed his second daughter in his arms. He had tears in his eyes, from the labour and the pain, but also because he was so moved that it was over and he held his healthy little baby daughter in his arms.  
  
She was small and looked like a carbon copy of Remus. That was at least what Lily claimed to see.   
  
The baby opened her eyes already, turned her little head around and thrilled Sirius to bits with that. He caressed her very gently with his big hands. Remus watched this and said:  
  
"Thank you, love! She's quite a lovely little one."  
  
"You've given me another daddy's little girl, love..." Sirius whispered.   
  
"Happy?"  
  
Sirius nodded. He let Remus caress the baby. Poppy spelled the navel clean and once the cord was gone she wrapped Alya in a baby blanket. Remus picked her up for the first time.  
  
"Hello, my sweet little daughter! Welcome to the family, little one."  
  
He held her so that she could look into his face for a moment, then he laid her against his chest. Remus beamed as he held his daughter. He felt the slight kicks of the baby in his belly at the same time and thought it was an incredible feeling. It made him smile. Lily watched the two men. She almost cried and thought it looked so sweet. Poppy quickly cleaned Sirius and the bed up. He sat up and stretched out his arms. Remus returned the little one to him. Both smiled at each other and Remus bent down to kiss his mate.  
  
"Love you. And the little ones."  
  
Sirius held him in place and returned the kiss.   
  
"Feeling okay?" Remus asked softly.  
  
Sirius nodded and turned back to Alya. She made a few little noises and he grinned.  
  
"Yes, girl, speak up! How about filling that little belly of yours? Want a first taste of your food for the next couple of months? It's tasty, you'll see!"  
  
Sirius guided the little mouth over the nipple and Alya didn't need telling twice. Her reflexes in place she snapped the nipple and started to suckle. Sirius snapped, too, but for air.  
  
"Wow, lady! You're knocking the wind out of me! Take care of your old man, will you? That's better now..."  
  
Alya struggled a little at first, but she got enough into her belly to satisfy her for a while. By the time she had finished she was almost asleep, but the food in her belly helped her stay awake for another little while. Poppy took her to check her up with a few spells.  
  
"She's perfectly fine, Sirius. Congratulations. You've done a fine job, too!"  
  
"Thanks, Poppy."  
  
Remus took Alya back up and went to get her dressed. She was completely dry now and while there were still a few red spots all over her she looked rosy and healthy. Remus unwrapped the blanket. He gently washed her with a soft cloth, then he got her dressed. Her crib had been set up in the bedroom, so he brought her back to the bedroom and put her down into the crib. He turned around and Lily stood there, giving him a great hug. He grinned.  
  
"Both of us pregnant... makes for funny hugs!"  
  
He patted her bulging belly. She still had to wait for a good three months and his own baby was still almost two months away.   
  
"Let's fill the announcement and send them off," Remus said.  
  
"Yes, let's go."  
  
They left Sirius back to recover and take a nap. Alya slept as well, so Lily and Remus returned to the living room where Remus filled one parchcard and spell-copied the others. The envelopes had been prepared beforehand and all the cards were inserted. He only needed to pick them up and take them up to the owlery. While he did that Lily informed the headmaster. She gave the password to the gargoyle and climbed the moving staircase and, reaching the oak door, knocked.   
  
"Come in!" Dumbledore called.  
  
Lily opened the door and her smiling face promised good news.   
  
"Hello, Lily. What can I do for you?"  
  
"Sirius has just given birth, Albus."  
  
"Oh, lovely! Is he well?"  
  
"Yes, very well. He has another girl. Her name is Alya. She's a cutie and perfectly fine according to Poppy. Both are asleep now."  
  
"I shall see them tomorrow then. Remus is happy, too, I would think?"  
  
"Beams! He's just gone up to the owlery to send the birth announcements. Even with the baby in his belly he's had that spring in his walk... he's looking great right now."  
  
"That he does. After that confrontation with Voldemort and now with a newly born baby daughter I would expect him to be quite happy. It is good for him to become so self-confident. He needs to think more of himself. And how are you feeling?"  
  
"Oh, I'm fine. It's still a couple of months, but James can't wait now! I think, I have a bit more patience."  
  
Remus had meanwhile reached the owlery and sent off a couple of birth announcements. He returned to Sirius quickly and found his mate fast asleep. Remus undressed, threw a last glance into Alya's crib and climbed into the bed next to Sirius. Sirius snuggled up to him in his sleep. Remus smiled as he pulled his husband close and slept right away.  
  
They had the usual round of people congratulating them the next day. Peter and Sabina had taken the day off to come and see the newly born girl and the baby's two godmothers Dari and Hope turned up as well. Sirius was back into nursing and this time it was already known territory, so he didn't mind the visitors who streamed into their place at Hogwarts. Remus was happy to have another daughter. Actually he was just happy to have another child.   
  
It was a bit of work to get settled into their new life with now three children. Sirius was off the hook for some of the work because he was already nursing Alya, who proved to be a hungry little one and was quite demanding. Vega and Polaris were curious, but they didn't really understand that they now had a younger sister. Remus played with them as much as he could, always trying to avoid making wrong movements with the baby still in his belly.  
  
His time came just before the June full moon. He had hoped that the full moon would pass before the baby was born, but it was not to be. In the middle of the night on the twenty-seventh he went into labour and it lasted well into the next day until the baby was born. It was another boy and everyone around grinned, now Sirius had borne two girls and Remus two boys. They named the new little one Antares. Remus had hardly time to recover from the birth, when Sirius helped him to the Shrieking Shack, because they didn't know if Remus would transform that night but had to think he would. And he did. But Moony was very subdued that night and Padfoot didn't have a hard time nudging Moony on the bed. They stayed there for most of the thankfully short night.  
  
Still, giving birth and transforming twice, all within twenty-four hours was a bit much for Remus, he was out of it for most of the day and the next night. Sirius took it onto himself to nurse not only Alya, but also Antares. But the second feeding he propped Remus up a bit and helped Antares feed from his other papa, just to get the lactation going. It was a bit of a hard job, but he managed to do it. Poppy was by his side, helping him. She had assured Sirius that Remus was fine, just over-exhausted and that he needed some rest. By the next morning Remus was awake again and hungry like a wolf. Sirius beamed at him and sent for his breakfast, then he brought Antares to him and made him nurse the baby.   
  
"There isn't much in there, I'm afraid, love," Remus said to his suckling son, "but I promise a better cuisine very soon."  
  
"He'll take what's there and wake you up an hour before his time..." Sirius prophesised.  
  
"Takes no skills in Divination to guess that," Remus replied.  
  
They were both extremely happy. They had made it that far, Remus had survived the birth and the subsequent transformation, everything was just fine at that moment.  
  
But there was a surprise in store for them later in the day. They had both installed themselves and the babies as well as their toddlers in their living room when there was a knock on the door. Sirius opened it and in strolled a haggard looking Snape.  
  
"What are YOU doing here?" Sirius sneered.  
  
"Dumbledore told me to come here, how should I have known I'd find YOU here?" Snape replied, a bit too loud, because he woke not only Antares, but Alya, Vega and Polaris, too.  
  
"Oh, great, now look what you've done, you idiot?" Sirius swore.  
  
Snape looked around, rather bedraggled, and pointed at the children.  
  
"What's that supposed to be? A bloody nursery? I thought you were doing research here..."  
  
"For your information, we ARE doing research here. They're our children though. And if you can't behave in here then march straight back out. We don't need any Death Eaters around our children," Sirius seethed, door still open in his hand.  
  
"I sent him to see you, Sirius, because you will work together on some levels. Severus has come to see me today. May I come in and meet the new Mr. Black?"  
  
"Hello Albus! Yes, of course, please come in. He's crying over there, Severus just woke them all up. We need to get them back to sleep."  
  
It wasn't quite so easy to soothe four tiny children back to sleep at the same time. Remus picked up Antares and Sirius lifted Alya on his arms and both sat down and let them suckle for a while, which put them back to sleep nicely. Then they stood up and took the babies over to their bedroom, where they could lay them into their cribs. Then they returned to the sitting room to take care of Vega and Polaris, who were both still quite upset. Both took hold of one of the children, taking their time and not caring whether the headmaster wasted time waiting for them or not.  
  
"You'll have to pardon us, headmaster, but the children do come first," Remus apologised.   
  
He calmed Vega down, put her head on his shoulder and rocked her gently. Sirius mirrored his actions with his son. He threw a worried glance at his mate and asked him:  
  
"Are you okay, Remus? Not tired?"  
  
"I'm fine, love."  
  
"Good. - So, what's all this about?"  
  
"Voldemort has ordered Severus to come and ask for a position on the Hogwarts staff. He thinks he needs a spy in our ranks, and he was convinced it would be a good idea to have someone here who is sly enough to find out what we might be up to. Severus has offered because it is known that I am out of a Potions Master since the end of the school year. I have, of course, given him the position. For one, he is excellent at potions, for two, Severus has come straight to me to tell me he would like to work for us and help us defeating Lord Voldemort. That obviously means you will see each other here at Hogwarts and I want you to be civil with each other. You will also work together at some levels. Severus, if you need to report something you come either to me or you go straight to Remus and Sirius, if I should not be available. Is that understood?"  
  
"Yes, headmaster," Snape said, but it was clear that he wasn't pleased with the prospect of having to report to those two.  
  
"Good. I trust you three can behave like adults and leave each other alone?"  
  
"We are busy enough with the research and our little ones, we will certainly not waste time with schoolboy amusements," Sirius promised.  
  
"That is what I wanted to hear from you, Sirius, thank you."  
  
Snape still looked at the little ones. He took in the changed appearance of both, Remus and Sirius and was rather bewildered. At the last confrontation between Voldemort and the pair of them he had remained in the circle of the other Death Eaters of the inner circle as he had been told to do and his back had been to the area where they fought, so he had not seen them then. Now he noticed that both of them had fairly prominent female breasts hidden under their robes.  
  
"What's the meaning of that?" he asked, pointing at the children.  
  
"That, I am afraid, is my fault, Severus. But I can't give you the details unless Remus is comfortable with me giving away his secret to you..."  
  
Remus looked at Dumbledore angrily, but gave in.  
  
"Only if you memory charm him if he gets aggressive..." he whispered.  
  
"Granted. Remus has been bitten by a werewolf when he was but a small child, Severus."  
  
"What? And you let him into the school? Werewolves are monsters!" Snape said.  
  
"If Remus is a monster, then I'm a giant," Sirius spat, "he's certainly less of a monster than all of you Death Eaters. At least he hasn't ever killed anyone."  
  
"As you know Remus is a very gifted wizard, Severus. That is why we have allowed him the education that is selfunderstanding for every wizard and witch. It was far from selfunderstanding to Remus. And he has not disappointed us. I know that Tom Riddle has the greatest of respect and seethes about the wards Remus has set up left and right. You probably know that as well. Now the reason for them to be able to procreate is that werewolves can mate for life after all. It does take a while, but Remus and Sirius underwent the rituals. One consequence is that the body of a mated werewolf, if male, develops all inner female reproduction organs. The werewolf becomes a fully functional hermaphrodite. Since in our case we have two males who were mated the effect showed in Sirius as well. The mating boosted a lot of magical power in them. You might remember an incident in Hogsmeade when you were disarmed and not only you, but about a dozen other people found their wands gone and themselves on the ground, too. That was the effect of them casting a spell together. A very powerful combination. The mating only works when both partners who wish to bond for life are virgins."  
  
"So they could get... pregnant?" Snape asked, baffled.  
  
"Yes, they could, and they did, because I did not tell them of the possibility. It did take a year for their bodies to have undergone that internal change. Once they were pregnant for the first time, some time in February or March before the end of their seventh year, their power was boosted a further step. I can safely say that if these two here cast a spell together, with their bodies connected in some way they are probably casting the most powerful magic possible in these days."  
  
"Are you telling me that these two are capable of killing the Dark Lord?"  
  
"I am. Did you see Lord Voldemort after his confrontation with them?"  
  
"Only a few days later."  
  
"Then you did not see the wounds they cast on him. Among other things they sent a hailstorm worth of sharpest knives at him and he caught a fair few of them. The beauty of the spell is that they can, once they have it down completely, send a whole line of such knives, so that no matter to where the victim tries to jump they will be hit. They will even be able to make those flying knives follow their victim. For this time Lord Voldemort was only hit by the knives Sirius threw at him, but if they get a chance to ever do the same and cast the spell together... then I expect that this will be the end of your Dark Lord. He is not yet far enough to have conquered death and I do not intend to let it come quite that far. I am sure you will agree with me."  
  
"Yes, I think, I do," Severus admitted.   
  
"Good. Are you ready to see your quarters now? I do expect they have been prepared by now."  
  
"Thank you, sir."  
  
Dumbledore took Snape along and Sirius and Remus looked at each other with their mouths slightly hanging open. Remus pushed his jaw back up with his hand and said:  
  
"Well, there's a surprise."  
  
At lunch they met Lily who came over to share it with them, and they informed her about the new Potions teacher.   
  
"Oh dear! Imagine our children having school with him! He'll be SO mean to them."  
  
"He'll be a killer! I really hope that by the time they come to Hogwarts he'll be out of the picture. But he really seems to want to help Dumbledore. I don't think, Dumbledore would trust him if that wasn't the case," Remus said.  
  
"You know, if it was Voldemort himself who planted Snape here, and Snape acts as a double agent for our benefit, then we could use that one day. We need to give them time to gain trust on both sides. I have a few ideas!" Lily said.  
  
"Like?"  
  
"Well, there are the meetings. It's going to be too obvious if we get information about attacks from Snape and thwart them. That would put him into a very awkward position. But if Snape can use excuses during term for not going to meetings we could send Peter again and then thwart attacks. That would make Voldemort suspect anyone but Severus, because Severus wasn't there and wouldn't know details straight away, would he?"  
  
"Brilliant! No wonder you're good at chess. Let's suggest this at the next Order meeting!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
They did just that. The next meeting was just a week away, so they had a chance to bring this up. They arrived on the spot in time and when Dumbledore entered, he brought Snape with him. Most people started to murmur and were outraged, but Dumbledore asked them to be quiet for a moment and listen to him:  
  
"This young man has become a Death Eater something over a year ago. But half a year into serving Lord Voldemort has taught him that this is not what he wants. You all know that it is a very difficult thing to get away from the Death Eaters and to our knowledge no one has been able to do it so far. Voldemort enslaves his servants. Instead of trying to get away fully, Severus has given his master the idea to plant him as a spy at Hogwarts. He had heard about the opening for a Potions teacher and came to me, to ask if I would entrust him with the position. He told me that Voldemort wanted to use him as a spy right in the middle of our safe haven. And he offered to act as a double agent in our favour. I now give him some classified information to take to Voldemort. Nothing really dangerous, but he needs to bring some things to his master, so Voldemort won't suspect he has changed the sides. I now want to ask you to accept Severus as a member of the Order of the Phoenix. I have full trust in him and believe him. He has already given me some valuable information and will continue to do so as he is in Voldemort's inner circle already at his young age."  
  
There was a vote against trusting a Death Eater from two members, but then Sirius stood up and said:  
  
"I agree with you, Albus. We should accept him."  
  
All other Marauders supported that vote and since everyone knew how much the four of them despised the 'greasy git' they also knew that if the Marauders accepted Snape into the Order he should be all right. Snape was almost dizzy when he heard his arch-enemies from his school days speak up for him. He received a place at the table and then Dumbledore opened the meeting.  
  
Snape blinked. No initiation or anything? He looked puzzled and quietly asked Peter, who sat next to him.  
  
"No. You are free to leave anytime. You do this here out of your own free will," Peter said quietly.  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Your master won't know and won't see anything that will give away that you are a member."  
  
"That's good then," Snape said and put his right hand over the Dark Mark on his left wrist.  
  
Dumbledore outlined the development of the situation since the last meeting, several members reported their latest missions and then Dumbledore asked:  
  
"Very well. It has been a bit quiet in the past two months. He has made himself known at the Quidditch game, but otherwise we know not what Lord Voldemort is up to. But nothing has happened anywhere and there is the danger that people get lulled by the inactivity. Severus tells me that he desperately tries to regroup and is now recruiting new Death Eaters. We have taken about six hundred out of his service, so it will certainly take a while until he has regrouped and he will have a harder time finding such people as he is looking for. I do not think that the pureblood families who are his prime target for recruits can replenish their ranks that fast. And he would have to wait a considerable amount of time for the new soldiers to grow up, would he not?"  
  
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled and there was laughter in the room.  
  
"Now then. That gives us a little time for our own schemes. Now that we have the upper hand I would like to work out some trap or something, because he remains to be a great danger to many lives and we need to have him eliminated. I would not normally claim a life, but this is a life that must be exterminated. Does anyone have an idea to contribute?"  
  
Lily stood up.  
  
"I think we should give Voldemort time to trust that Severus really spies for him. I would not suggest to feed all too wrong information, that would make Voldemort very suspicious. And finally I have thought about this and thought it might be good to take all suspicion away from Severus and try to find out if there could be reasons for him to stays away from meetings. To which we would send Peter instead of Severus."  
  
Snape snorted.  
  
"You actually think you could send Pettigrew under my robes and mask? He'd be found out in seconds flat."  
  
The Marauders, Lily and Sabina all grinned.  
  
"No, of course not, Severus. But every time you 'can't' go to a meeting - you're held up as a teacher of this school after all, and you can't get out without being missed, at least not too often, because that would really cause suspicion, well, to such meetings, Peter would go. He has a perfect disguise, rest assured of that, because he's been to dozens of your meetings already..."  
  
Snape's eyes grew wide. Then he counted two and two together:  
  
"Voldemort tortured Woodward to death with Cruciatus because he thought he was the traitor! So he wasn't? How did Pettigrew know where to go?"  
  
"Mr. Woodward was not really a spy. But he supplied me with the dates and locations of your meetings and Peter went to pick up what he could. Mostly we have received a full account, because all he needed to do was place his memories into my Pensieve, Severus. Now, I am telling you this only because I know that you are a very skilled Occlumens, and you will certainly be able to keep that particular information away from your master."  
  
Dumbledore turned to Lily, who had taken her seat again.   
  
"If it is at all practicable I think you have just had a wonderful idea, Lily. We absolutely need to protect Severus from harm. Not only because of his value to us as an informant, but definitely because he is in a very dangerous position and trying to turn his back to evil. That alone obligates us to do our utmost for his protection. Severus, do you think, you will get your master to be a bit pliable about your attendance at meetings? It would take suspicion away from you. So far Voldemort has no idea that we have a spy far outside of his ranks who nevertheless is in a position to be there. We will not tell you how Peter can do that for his own protection."  
  
"I don't know, sir, but I will have to report back if I have been accepted to the position in the next days. I'm waiting for the call as it is and then I can discuss the terms with him. Usually he is not pliable at all. So far I have mostly been asked to brew potions for him. And since he was satisfied with them I do think I am quite in his favour. But these potions are almost all very deadly poisons, which he uses on those Ministry people in the most cases. Usually they just vanish after having been exposed to those poisons. I cannot guarantee that I can fail them all in future. I can make some antidotes and play them into the hands of possible victims, but not all of them or he would be suspecting me in an instant."  
  
There were gasps in the room. Some people started to protest again, to Snape's surprise two of them were former Slytherins, among them one Andromeda Black.  
  
"I understand that, Severus. As terrible as it is, if he asks you to brew such potions you will have to oblige. I am sure we still will lose lives, but I am certain that we can prevent a few of them. Very well. I shall await your information when you come back."  
  
Nothing else needed to be discussed. While the people started to leave the room, Severus looked at them and noticed that the Order of the Phoenix was a very mixed society. Men, women, old, young, members from all four houses, some from the lower segment of the wizarding population as well as nobility. There were Aurors, professionals of all sorts and several house-wives. But he had heard a few reports from several of them and had quickly gathered that they all knew what they were talking about. Some people were so old he thought they had probably already taken a great part in the war against Grindelwald. He left to find his quarters near his classroom in the dungeons. Since there were no students in the castle, the Order members casually streamed through it to the main Entrance Hall, something they certainly wouldn't do when school was in session.   
  
It was the beginning of July and the students had only just left. A week after his first meeting with the Order Severus was called to Voldemort. He apparated there and noticed they were completely alone. The high pitched voice of his master told him to get up. Snape obliged and saw himself opposite the man he would hate for the rest of his life.   
  
"Master, I come to you as your loyal servant."  
  
"Very well, Severus. What do you have to report?"  
  
"I have been accepted as the new Potions teacher of Hogwarts."  
  
"That is excellent, Severus. And did you gain the trust of the old fool?"  
  
"Yes, master. I thought it would be a good idea to even offer to spy for him to gain his trust."  
  
"That is brilliant. Did he accept?"  
  
"Not at once. That's why I was glad you didn't call me right away."  
  
"I thought it would take a while. After all there are the school governors to be convinced of the choice of teacher... so you have already taken residence at Hogwarts?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Did he entrust you with the knowledge about the wards?"  
  
"Alas, no, master, only he himself and the headmistress know about the wards. They are not allowed to pass the knowledge on to anyone else, not even the school governors."  
  
That was a lie and immediately Snape felt Voldemort prying into his head. He had to use all of his strength to cover the lie up.  
  
"What else have you found out?"  
  
"There is a secret organisation, master, which they call the Order of the Phoenix..."  
  
"I know about that! That's very old news already, Dumbledore started this ridiculous thing back when he fought Grindelwald. Anything else?"  
  
"Black and Lupin are part of this Order."  
  
"Could have known that..." Voldemort hissed.  
  
"Yes, it was quite obvious."  
  
"Will your work as a teacher leave you time to continue brewing potions for me?" Voldemort asked.  
  
"Yes, I think so. Potions that will take more time will have to be done over the weekends, but quick potions I can make any time. I might not be able to come to all the meetings though, because I might be missed. Not only by Dumbledore, but especially by McGonagall, who is responsible for the staff as she's the deputy headmistress. And she won't take well to a teacher being absent all the time."  
  
"Yes, that is clear. You will try to make it as often as you can and I will summon you on weekends only."  
  
"That will be best. Can we say you can call me on either Saturday afternoon or Sunday evenings? To bring you the potions I've made or to take your orders..."  
  
"Can you add Friday evenings?"  
  
"Yes, master."  
  
"Very well, that will be all for the moment. If you are absent from a meeting I know that you have not been able to get away, but I do expect you as often as you can. At least once or twice a month."  
  
"Yes, master."  
  
"Very well, Severus. I will need you to make these four potions, soonest. You can go now."  
  
"Yes, master."  
  
Severus took the parchments with the potions and threw himself to the ground as was asked from a servant of the Dark Lord and as soon as Voldemort had left he got up and returned to Hogwarts. He reported back to Dumbledore. He then proceeded to do the same as Peter usually did, to not forget anything he placed the memory of his encounter with Voldemort into a Pensieve. They looked at it together and Dumbledore nodded.  
  
"Do you mind if we show this to everyone in the Order at the next meeting?"  
  
"I do, actually, but I suppose it has to be..."  
  
"It would prove to them that you have done your best," Dumbledore said softly.  
  
"Okay. Then let them see."  
  
"Very well. Thank you. Severus. I trust you have made yourself comfortable in your quarters?"  
  
"Yes, I have, thank you, sir."  
  
"Wonderful. Now I won't hold you up, I think you have some potions to brew."  
  
"Unfortunately," Snape sighed and left the headmaster's office.  
  
On the last day of July Lily finally went into labour. She sent Sirius out to go and find James. Sirius had to go quite far to achieve that and finally caught up with James on the south coast, where he was observing a suspect Death Eater. From the Auror headquarters Sirius brought a replacement, so that James could leave.  
  
"Hey mate!" Sirius whispered behind James, who jumped half a metre into the air.  
  
"Padfoot! What are you doing here, you prat?"  
  
"I'm bringing your replacement, because you're on duty somewhere else today. Lily needs you, she's gone into labour three hours ago. Remus is still with her. Moody lets you off the hook for three days."  
  
"Yay! Hey, Kingsley! Thanks for replacing me!"  
  
"That's very well, James. I know the feeling! Good luck to your old lady!"  
  
"I'll tell her! Everything here's been quiet so far, I only got here about an hour ago. I'm off then!"  
  
Sirius and James apparated to Hogsmeade and rode the two brooms Sirius had taken along up to the castle. In no time they reached Lily and James' rooms, where Lily was working through the contractions with Remus' help. He and Sirius did most of the support in the next hours, James had declared that since they knew how it felt they would have to know how to help best. He was happy to run around and do errands for them. But they ordered him next to his wife when the baby finally came. A tuft of jet-black hair announced the arrival of little Harry James Potter, an adorable baby boy. As soon as she held her son on her arms, Lily felt revived and was happy when Remus helped him to find the nipple and suckle his first meal. James was completely taken with his son and seemed to only consist of a smile.   
  
"Wow, what a feeling to finally meet you, Harry," he whispered.   
  
As soon as the navel was cleaned and magically healed and Harry had his first meal in his belly, he was allowed to move to James' arm. There were tears of emotion streaming down James' cheeks and he was so proud that everything had gone well. He marched out of the bedroom with the baby to present his son to his parents who had arrived two hours before and whoever else was in the sitting room. Dumbledore was there, of course, and McGonagall.   
  
"Everyone! Please meet Harry James Potter, my son. He's now an hour old."  
  
Sirius and Remus had stayed with Lily, until everything around her was cleaned up and Lily declared she would like to get a bit of sleep. Remus laughed softly, kissed her on the forehead and said:  
  
"That's about the last time you can get that unconditionally, Lily, because from now on little Harry is going to rule your life!"  
  
"I'm very afraid that is going to be the case. Thank you both for so much guidance and care!"  
  
"Can't leave a fellow mother in the ditch, now can we?" Sirius teased.  
  
"No, and I'm glad for that maternal solidarity!"  
  
"You're very welcome. Now sleep well."  
  
The two followed James to the sitting room, where their own children had been watched by two house-elves and later on Oliver and Martha Potter. They greeted Sirius and Remus warmly.  
  
"Hello Sirius, Remus! It's so nice to see you again. I have met your children! They're delightful!" Martha said.  
  
"Hello Mrs Potter. Thank you. It's wonderful to have them, but they're four and they're all still tiny, so it's a lot of work. But we love them to bits," Sirius replied.  
  
"Call me Martha, Sirius, it's about time for that! I can guess that they are a lot of work, but you seem to do a fine job. I heard you are even nursing them yourself?"  
  
"Yes, and I expect the next meal is in order now. We've had to take off a couple of times during Lily's labour. How do you like your grandson?"  
  
"We love him already! He's such a cute little fellow. How is Lily now?"  
  
"She's fine, just tired. She's glad for a little nap right now. I'm sure you will see her later."  
  
"Excellent. Now you go and feed your little ones." 


	14. 14 Black Family Tragedies

Title: Baby Boom! 14/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**14. Black Family Tragedies**  
  
For a few months there had been little that disturbed the families who were still living at Hogwarts. They worked from out of there, either for the Ministry or the Order and they took care of their little children, which occupied them for a good part of the day.   
  
Peter and Sabina now joined the ranks of those among the Marauders who were already parents. Sabina was pregnant and would have her baby some time in August 1981. She was very happy about it and beamed when the Marauders met for one of their traditional Friday evening meals together. Dari and Hope always turned up for these meals as well and while they were very happy for the others they were also a bit sad, because the lifestyle they had chosen would never give them children of their own.  
  
Sirius noted the sadness in their eyes and after the meal he took them to a corner and said:  
  
"I noticed that you were a bit melancholic because we're all parents now..."  
  
"Sure. It's the only thing that makes us a bit sad, because the two of us could not exactly do what you and Remus did."  
  
"Well, we can always donate sperm..." Sirius offered.  
  
The two young women stared at him at first, but then Dari started to grin and said:  
  
"You would do that? Really? Because that would be brilliant. We both would like to experience motherhood, though preferably not at the same time..."  
  
"I'll discuss it with James, Remus and Poppy, Peter is usually a bit too conservative to participate in something like this and as much as we all love him, you'd surely rather have someone with a bit more brains, wouldn't you?"  
  
"That would mean Remus," Hope retorted dryly.  
  
Sirius grinned, but said:  
  
"I thought to put it all together to make it random..."  
  
"Not a bad idea that," Hope admitted.  
  
"So you'd like that? You would make great mums!"  
  
"Thanks, Siri, that's really sweet of you!" Dari said and hugged him.  
  
"Anything for good friends. Anything for fellow Marauders!"  
  
"Hey, we've made it, Hope, he calls us fellow Marauders!" Dari exclaimed and laughed.  
  
They discussed it a month later with Poppy, who then kindly took it upon herself to get the insemination done on Hope. James had been mighty embarrassed at first, but Lily was able to get him in the mix. Remus and Sirius brought their samples and they were mixed with James'. Poppy took care of the insemination and a few weeks later Hope was actually pregnant. She and Dari beamed when they told the others. To Peter they only said that they had found sperm donators.   
  
It was now February 1981 and Sirius sat on the sofa in his sitting room with Alya on his lap. She suckled lazily on his breast. It was right after her nap and as usual she was hard to wake up, but she really enjoyed that afternoon breast meal, so Sirius kept it up for a little while. Alya had turned out to be the cuddliest of his children. She loved to sleep and slept a lot. Now she suckled and took her time for it, but Sirius didn't mind, because it gave him lots of time to cuddle with her. There was a knock on the door and Sirius opened it with a slight gesture of his hand. In strode Regulus Black. Sirius raised his eyebrows.  
  
"What are you doing here, Reg?" he asked.  
  
"Hi Sirius. Can I talk to you?"   
  
Regulus sounded very different from his usual snotty style. Sirius looked up and gestured to one of the armchairs around him. He adjusted Alya back on his lap and apologised for the abrupt movement before:  
  
"Sorry, sweetheart, just a little surprise is all. Now are we back in business?"  
  
He blew a little kiss on the ten months old girl and she resumed suckling. Regulus stared at his brother. He knew of course that Sirius had given birth to a second daughter. But to see him sitting there with the child suckling on his breast really looked very strange.  
  
Regulus pulled the sleeve on his left arm back and turned the forearm up. Sirius only shrugged and said:  
  
"No surprise there. Mum and dad finally got their Death Eater in the family. After all, dad was too clever to commit himself to life-long slavery..."  
  
"I think, you're right about him being too clever. He supports them financially though. Not too much, but quite a bit."  
  
"And why do you show up here and show me this? You don't even sound proud of it either."  
  
Remus came into the room with Vega and Polaris, who were now quite lively toddlers of two years. He had Antares on his arm. And he was quite astonished to see his brother-in-law sitting in his quarters.  
  
"I... it was a mistake, Sirius! I shouldn't have done it, it's the worst error I've ever made!" Regulus broke out.  
  
"A bit late to notice what everyone could have told you beforehand..."  
  
"You don't understand! Mum... she nagged and nagged and nagged until I gave in, I couldn't tell her off, I'm not like you, Sirius! I couldn't have turned my back on her. Then..."  
  
"When did you commit yourself, Regulus?" Sirius asked with a much softer voice.  
  
"Three weeks ago..." Regulus sobbed.  
  
"And now you want out again?"  
  
"I can't! He'd kill me! What can I do now, Sirius? Mum and dad will certainly not help me in any way!"  
  
"Talk to Dumbledore, Regulus. He can help you, I'm quite sure. Can you just try to remain inconspicuous among the other new Death Eaters? If you're sent on a raid you might just act like you're killing anyone and help saving some lives instead."  
  
Regulus nodded to all of that. Then he looked up at Sirius and asked:  
  
"Can you forgive me, Sirius? For being so mean to you? They were treating you so awful! I... I never understood why you wouldn't do what they wanted... how did you know that what they wanted and said was wrong?"  
  
Sirius sighed.  
  
"I felt it, Regulus. A child needs love, they never gave me any. I learned early on not to ask for love either. Not that they really gave it to you, but they acted it to you, that's why you probably won't understand the difference. But would you think that mum ever held me like I'm holding Alya now? That would have been way below her. The only one who gave warmth to me was Uncle Alphard. He did to me what our parents should have done. He cuddled me and when he came to the house he visited me every time and made sure I was okay. He talked to me, Regulus! And do you know what that meant to me? He was forbidden to see me once I went to primary school, but that's when I met James. Without him I would have been as lost a cause as you were. And from the moment I've known James I knew I would never become what my parents wanted me to become."  
  
It was Regulus' turn to sigh now. He watched how the four children cuddled with their fathers and how natural it looked that all four of them crawled over them and were kissed and caressed and talked to. They weren't ordered around and told to sit stiff and still like he had been.   
  
"You let them do what they want..." he remarked.  
  
"Right now, because it's playing and cuddling time, Regulus, but no, they aren't allowed to do as they please, they also have to learn a minimum of discipline. Enough to learn how to live together with others and play by the rules of society. We don't want to make puppets out of them, hanging on our threads. They will learn to make decisions. They will learn the situations when we have to make decisions for them and accept it until they are old enough to leave us. But by that time they will have knowledge enough to actually choose the right things."  
  
"They're lucky..."  
  
Regulus spent a few hours with his brother and brother-in-law and seemed to be a little encouraged. He went to see Dumbledore in the evening and came back in the morning to tell Sirius he would be leaving the Death Eaters and probably leave the country for a while. Sirius was relieved that his brother had found the courage to get away from Voldemort on his own. He hoped to find a way back to his brother. That night he held Remus very tightly. Remus caressed him tenderly and whispered:  
  
"He'll be okay. I'm sure he can get away if he leaves the country. So far the Death Eaters have not gone beyond the British Isles..."  
  
"You always know how I feel, Remus. You're amazing, you know!" Sirius sighed.  
  
"I know because you're my mate. You know how I feel as well. For once I am glad to be a werewolf, because it made me experience something so exceptional..."  
  
"How are those researchers doing with the potion?"  
  
"Final testing in the next few full moons according to mum. Would you allow me to participate?"  
  
"Only if they're beyond the stage of killing test subjects, Remus. I can't lose you!"  
  
"Would you believe that in the whole procedure only two werewolves died? The potion is supposed to suppress the rage. It can't suppress the transformation, but it makes the wolf harmless. If the same mixture proves okay for three consecutive full moons it can be handed out."  
  
"Then take part in it, Remus. We cannot lose you. I can't lose you for obvious reasons, because I love you more than anything or anyone, and the wizarding world can't lose you because we still have a job to do together. But I don't want you to suffer more than cannot be avoided."  
  
"Being such a danger for anyone around me is the worst thing I'm carrying around, Sirius. If there is a way that can make me safe when I'm a wolf then I want that."  
  
"I want that for you, too, love! I hate it that we have to leave our children on those nights. If you'd be safe enough to stay with us that would be so good!"  
  
"First I have to know that I can take the stuff and how it works. And for that I will have to be locked away behind glass doors where everyone can see me, love."  
  
"That's alright, but Padfoot will be right there with you. I don't think they'll deny you the dog..."  
  
"I don't think so either. I'll tell mum that she can put me on the list of the final test subjects. I would have participated a while ago, but having the children meant I was out for that."  
  
"Right now you're between children in any case and that means you should do it."  
  
They went to sleep after that, entangled in each other's limbs, Remus' head firmly pressed to Sirius' shoulder, arms around each other.   
  
Their quarters were a bit tight now, but the four children didn't seem to mind to share the room they had. It was quite large anyway, so there were two four posters now, one held Polaris and Vega, the other was for the little ones. Both beds were warded, so that none of the children could fall out of them. As long as they were still toddlers this would do well, but of course Sirius and Remus were well aware that they would have to look for a house to live in soon.   
  
The decision would have to be made soon, because Lily was close to finishing her job at Hogwarts and so she and James started to think about finding a place of their own. They talked to Remus and Sirius about it.  
  
"Wouldn't it be great if we found some really big place and all moved in together? We could baby-sit for each other much easier and who knows, maybe Sabina and Peter would like to join us? They're still living in that apartment in Diagon Alley after all," James said.  
  
Sirius and Remus looked happy about the suggestion.  
  
"But then let's take time and really look for a good place. I'm thinking some kind of an old castle? We could afford that..." Sirius suggested.  
  
"Yes, that's a jolly good idea! I agree with you! What do you think, Remus?"  
  
"I'd be happy to move in with you. Not that I can contribute much more than wards and children..." he replied in his usual dry way.  
  
"That's quite a lovely contribution though, don't you think?" James asked, grinning.  
  
"Well, if that's what you want... yes, I think it would be great to be together. Do we include Hope and Dari?"  
  
"That'd be great! And would make for an even spread. Four women and four men!" Lily was all for it.  
  
"Not a bad idea if they're interested. Hope's baby will come by end of November, if they're interested they would certainly be glad to be well settled before she gives birth."  
  
"I'll look around and ask some wizarding housing agent. I know one in Hogsmeade," James offered.  
  
"Then all we have to do is to put our assets together and look at the options," Sirius said.  
  
A week after Regulus' visit to Sirius he was found dead on his parents' doorstep. Snape came back with the news of what had happened:  
  
"Voldemort had found out that your little brother was trying to flee, Black. He was caught by the Lestrange brothers. I'm sorry, but there was nothing I could do, I wasn't there when they brought him in. But I don't think those two treated him especially kindly. I have yet to hear that Rodolphus kills anyone with a simple Avada Kedavra."  
  
Sirius was devastated. For a moment he had believed that Regulus would be able to leave all that darkness behind and start a new life. He cried the whole night through, but then he pulled himself together and apparated to London and stood on the doorstep of Nr 12, Grimmauld Place for the first time since he had left it years ago.   
  
The door opened to his hand without resistance. He went inside and prepared himself to meet with his parents who would be beside themselves. He found them in the drawing room. Both wore deepest black, but of course they didn't show a sign of real mourning. They looked up and saw him.   
  
"Blood-traitor!" his mother screamed immediately, but a simple movement from Sirius' hand silenced her effectively.  
  
He threw a glance at his father who stood motionless with a frozen expression on his face. Sirius had always been thankful to have inherited his father's good looks and his mother's intelligence. He looked them up and down without saying a word for a few minutes. Then he asked coldly:  
  
"Do you have anything to do with Regulus' murder?"  
  
"Of course not! Why would we have anything to do with the death of our chosen heir?" his father replied just as coldly.  
  
"Possibly because you wouldn't care, father. You would call him a blood-traitor, like you call me, but you would be angrier with him than you ever were with me. Because he tried so hard to become what you wanted him to be. And he did what you wanted and noticed that this was not what he wanted to become. He has not committed a murder before he was killed himself and for that I am utterly glad. You wanted him to become a professional killer, father. And Regulus decided he didn't want to kill. He paid for that decision to do what is right with his life. Did you know that Voldemort left him to Rodolphus and Rabastan Lestrange? His best 'friends', father! His best friends killed him, slowly, casting Cruciatus until he died. They dragged it out, father, they stopped the curse, let him take a few breaths and hope that it was all just a punishment, but then they cast the curse again. And again. And again until he died. Is that what you wanted for your sons, father? Is that how you loved your son to want something like that?"  
  
"We wanted what was best for the House of Black, Sirius, as you know very well."  
  
"And now the House of Black will go on as I want it to go on, father. That is what you will get. Your own fault. You're responsible that your son has died, not even twenty years old. I hope you're proud of yourself."  
  
"I'd rather leave everything to Narcissa's son than to you!"  
  
"Bad luck, father. You can't. You know it. And your dear Voldemort won't last very long any more, we'll make sure of that. Now go on and tell them to come after me to get rid of me. Try all you like, father. Only you won't get farther than Voldemort did when he found himself at my wandpoint."  
  
Sirius looked at his mother with contempt, waved his hand and released the silencing charm, then he left. He couldn't attend his brother's funeral as there was none. The young man had been cremated and the urn was added to the others in the family crypt very quietly. His parents made sure he didn't know when it took place.  
  
But it was not the only death in the Black family to occur. Regulus had not been buried for more than two weeks when Sirius received the news through the family lawyers to come to Grimmauld Place immediately, as his father was dying. Sirius organised babysitters and took Remus with him to go to London. Never before had Remus set a foot into the House of Black. Sirius opened the door and Remus saw how much he hated it.   
  
"I have to take the inheritance. If I don't it will all go to Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy. I want to absolutely certainly prevent that. My mother has a life-long right to live in the house, but she gets an allowance - the amount of which I can set, by the way. How's that for sweet justice? Better than revenge, Remus, believe me!"  
  
Remus smiled. He was glad that Sirius put justice over revenge and he would have understood if he had taken revenge out on his mother as she had tortured him throughout his life as a child.  
  
"The family lawyers are pretty much alright. Since the family traditionally looked down on them they didn't really care what kind of lawyers they had, but they saw to it that the family statutes and laws were kept up. And those prohibit disinheritance. There was a time when that was common and the family nearly died out, so some more intelligent ancestors set that law up to prevent this. And it hasn't been revoked yet."  
  
They entered the endless entrance hall and the gaslights sprang to life. Kreacher, the house-elf came up the stairs to the kitchen to see who had entered the house. He threw a few ugly things at Sirius, but Sirius reminded him:  
  
"Take care, Kreacher, I will be your master soon and then I'll have you killed and burned! You will not have your head up there with the others!"  
  
Remus shivered, followed Sirius' pointing finger and saw to his horror that the staircase was adorned with the heads of beheaded house-elves.  
  
"Siri!"  
  
"Well, that's his biggest ambition, you know. Beheaded and his head up there on the wall! Looks nice, doesn't it? Regulus used to be scared to death of them. So was I but I didn't show it."  
  
"How very Gryffindor of you, love..." Remus said with a smile.  
  
"Whatever. Kreacher, take our cloaks, please!"  
  
The house-elf grumbled, but followed the command, then Sirius led Remus to the drawing room. He found Lucius Malfoy there, watching over his baby son Draco. Bellatrix of course was in Azkaban and Narcissa was probably up with his father.  
  
"Now that it's about inheriting you're back, Black! Wouldn't have thought you'd do that..."  
  
"They can't disinherit me, Lucius, and I will claim what's mine. And give that family the turn to a nobility it lacks. - Are they up with my father?"  
  
"I suppose so. You know 'Cissa. I was told to watch Draco, and being the good husband I am that's what I'm doing."  
  
Sirius snorted.   
  
"Good husband, my foot... come, Remus, we'll have to make an appearance, even if I will have to silence my mother again..."  
  
They went up to the master bedroom. Sirius knocked on the door and opened it. He found his mother sitting at his father's bed and Narcissa, standing next to her aunt and turning around to see who had entered the room. On the other side of the bed was a healer.  
  
"Didn't I tell you to stay with Draco, Lucius? .... Sirius?"  
  
"Yes, my dear cousin. The lawyers saw fit to call me here, since neither you nor mother would have. You will have to bear with me, I'm afraid."  
  
For once his mother didn't screech. Remus stood still next to the door. He didn't want to intrude, but he knew that his mate needed his support. Sirius approached the bed. His father seemed to be unconscious.  
  
"What happened, mother?" Sirius asked.  
  
"The healers were here and said he had a cerebral apoplexy and that there was no magical cure of that. He is completely paralysed. Can't even say a word. That's all your fault, you know? If you hadn't turned up the other day and said all those awful things he wouldn't have collapsed!"  
  
"Oh, so you make this my fault now? I'm sorry, mother, but what I said was only the truth. If that kills him then it's his own fault and not mine. You know it might be his guilty conscience. After all he sent his son to meet his death. The one you wanted to have as your heir, even if you couldn't change the legal situation."  
  
"Shut it, Sirius! You've done enough damage."  
  
"So sorry, mother, you and father have done the damage. I will only clear it up. How long will he have?" Sirius asked the healer.  
  
"Not long. Maybe until tonight or tomorrow night. His heart is very weak," the healer said.  
  
Mrs Black began to wail and Narcissa put up a false sob. Sirius rolled his eyes and looked down on his unconscious father. He felt nothing. Neither rage nor sadness, just nothing.   
  
"Remus and I will stay here for the next few nights," Sirius announced and left the room with his mate.  
  
They were both aware of the furious glances Narcissa sent after them. Of course she had tried to get the inheritance safe for her son, but he would show her that she'd attempt to bite into a slab of granite if she so much as tried. He led Remus up a flight of stairs and called for Kreacher.  
  
"Kreacher, within an hour you'll have my room cleaned. My husband and I will stay here for a few days."  
  
"As you wish, master," Kreacher answered and vanished up the stairs.  
  
"Come, love, we'll wait it out in the library. There is a small sitting area which is about the only bearable space in this bloody house. And you can sneak around the books. I want them listed in a catalogue."  
  
Remus chuckled. They had not brought anything to change, but they would have to go and get their babies anyway, since they were still nursed. Remus would take care of that after they had set up cribs in Sirius' room. Vega and Polaris would be fine with Lily and James for a few nights.   
  
For the next two hours they sat in the library, noting down titles of books on long rolls of parchment. Sirius had to take off hexes from several of the books, which were protected, so that only someone with the blood of a Black was able to even touch the books. In a corner Sirius dropped over a smallish, but thick book and lifted it up.   
  
"Black family birth records... that looks quite interesting, Remus, I didn't know there was something like this."  
  
Remus came close and they looked inside of the book. They found all records of births of immediate Blacks, from the first of the dynasty to the last - Antares Black. Sirius grinned and read:  
  
"Here: Vega Black, born 5.12.1978, to Sirius Black and Remus Lupin-Black. Polaris Black, born 12.12.1978, to Sirius Black and Remus Lupin-Black. Alya Black, born 7.5.1980, to Sirius Black and Remus Lupin-Black. And finally: Antares Black, born 28.6.1980, to Sirius Black and Remus Lupin-Black. This book will be good for safe-keeping."  
  
"Seems like this records the Black births magically..."  
  
"Looks very much like it. And can you see this? My mother probably tried to tear out the pages containing our children. And the book just supplied new ones. That's quite hilarious, you know!"  
  
Sirius grinned. They looked through some of the books they had noted down, but Sirius sighed and said:  
  
"It'd be better to go through it systematically in the next days. We might be here for a couple of days anyway, so we might as well note all the titles with an enchanted quill."  
  
"Good idea. I'll bring your Dictaquill. This should be an interesting find for Dumbledore."  
  
"You bet. He regretted that I was on such bad terms with my family. He wants to learn what he can from this stuff here."  
  
"Well, then I should probably leave and get our stuff. What do you want me to bring along for you?"  
  
"Just the children, some robes and toiletry."  
  
"Okay."  
  
"Let me accompany you downstairs, love."  
  
"Sure. I'll be back in an hour or two."  
  
"You can floo in. Grimmauld Place will do, there's no one else under this address. I'll wait in front of the floo fire for you."  
  
"Very good."  
  
Sirius didn't have to wait long. Just over an hour later the fire glowed green and Remus brought the bags and Antares, then he returned to bring in Alya. They picked up the children and levitated their bags up to the room which was now presentable. Sirius enlarged the two cots that Remus had brought along.   
  
Half an hour later they turned up in the drawing room, where Lucius still sat with a whiny Draco. The child was about the same age as Alya, but while his daughter was a very content child the little Malfoy heir did everything to bring his father close to madness.  
  
Alya was the oldest of the three, Draco was about a month younger and Antares was the smallest. Alya, being used to her three siblings, crawled over to Draco and motioned him to play with her, but Draco sat on his little bum and started bawling. Lucius looked stressed and angry, and obviously didn't know what to do with his son, but Sirius stood up, went over and crouched down in front of the children. He turned to Draco.  
  
"Hey, little man! There's nothing to cry about! Alya just wants to play with you."  
  
When Lucius didn't make a move, Sirius lifted Draco up and soothed the baby.  
  
"Come on now, young man, you're not afraid of your cousin, now are you? See? That's much better. Why don't you two crawl around and see who's faster? Now you're smiling, Draco. You look so much nicer when you smile..."  
  
Lucius stared furiously at Sirius, who set the boy back down on the floor and watched from further on how Draco started to crawl around with Alya. Antares, not yet so sure of himself in that department, sat next to Remus and looked after his sister and his cousin. Sirius took his seat on Remus' side again. Half an hour later Narcissa came in and found her son dusty, but happily playing with his cousin Alya who looked just as dusty.  
  
"Draco! What the heck did you do? You're all dirty! How could you have let him crawl on the dirty floor, Lucius? These silk clothes are brand new, now they're ruined!" Narcissa cried.  
  
Sirius rolled his eyes and cleaned both children with a simple wave of his hand.  
  
"He played with his cousin, Narcissa. That's what babies do, you know, playing. So they were crawling around and got a bit dusty. Complain with Kreacher that the floor is dirty. And it's not like we couldn't clean them magically, now is it? Leave poor Lucy alone. He's got enough to take in from his other master."  
  
Remus looked at Sirius warningly, but his barbs weren't picked up by Narcissa. She picked up Draco and looked down at Alya, like she wanted to tread on the girl. Alya sat down and looked up to her with those huge brown eyes of hers. Then the baby smiled.   
  
"Dada!" she called.  
  
"I'm right here, love," Sirius replied.   
  
Alya turned and crawled to him. He picked her up and took her on his lap.  
  
"There's my sweetheart. You're a big one, Alya, yes, you've done well. Did you have fun? Well done, Alya."  
  
"Dinner will be served in five minutes," Narcissa declared and left the room.   
  
Lucius got up and followed her. He had not even reacted to Sirius' taunts. Remus picked up Antares and cleaned his son, too, then they followed the Malfoys. Sirius grinned. He'd won a round.  
  
"Don't you think it's rather strange that Lucius is so subdued?" Remus asked, before they left the room.  
  
"In a way only. He's always been firmly under Narcissa's command. She's the one holding the reins in this marriage, believe me. I think, that's why he compensates with extreme cruelty to others. She's the Ice Queen among my cousins. I always used to call Bella the Fire Queen and Narcissa the Ice Queen. My mother and my aunt hated me for that. Of course I also called Andy the Queen of Hearts, that made them even madder."  
  
Remus grinned, plenty amused.  
  
"He didn't even answer you on your taunt of having to take in much from Voldemort. Too good, that one. I think, I'm going to enjoy my stay here," he said and placed Antares on his hip.  
  
Sirius laughed.  
  
"Unless Moldy Voldy decides to make an appearance. Then we'd have to pelt him with another dose of our flying knives."  
  
Grinning, the two made their way to the dining room, where the table was set for five adults and three children. Sirius transfigured two high chairs and changed Remus' cutlery to non-lethal chrome. He and Remus set Alya and Antares in their chairs and sat down between the two children, opposite of Narcissa and Lucius. They didn't have to wait long and Mrs Black made her appearance. She swept to her place at the head of the table and a sharp clap of her hand made Kreacher deliver the food to the table. Leda Black threw a curious glance over her two youngest grandchildren and her great-nephew. Alya looked content and like Remus, she was dismissed immediately, as she was a girl. Antares, on the other hand, was entirely his father. A lively little boy with alert blue-grey eyes, his daddy's black hair and the same cute nose Sirius had. To avoid a big drama Remus and Sirius fed their children and didn't allow them to hold the spoon themselves. Alya was hungry after all that crawling she'd done. Antares didn't want the solid food at all. Remus took him on his lap and held him there for a while until he had eaten. Then he stood up and excused himself:  
  
"I have to feed him, he's not fully ready to eat solid foods yet."  
  
"Nothing wrong to give him the bottle here..." Lucius said, puzzled.  
  
"No, but since I am his bottle, some people might be slightly offended."  
  
He lifted Antares up and took him back to the drawing room, where he nursed his son. Leda looked sullenly at Sirius and asked:  
  
"What's that half-human saying?"  
  
"Mother, his name is Remus and he looks a lot more human to me than you do. He and I became hermaphrodites when we got mated. Normally we look like the men we are, but we can have children, ergo our four little ones, and while they are small we have all the necessary female 'equipment' so to speak to nurse them. As soon as we stop nursing, these outer female appearances vanish again. Until needed again that is."  
  
The three adults in the room stared at him. Even in the wizarding world things like that sounded rather fantastic. Sirius sighed and explained:  
  
"I know it sounds strange. It hasn't happened in the wizarding world since the werewolf segregation laws have come to pass. Rarely would a human get close with a werewolf and if someone got bitten who was already married or sexually experienced it couldn't happen. Two people, at least one of them a werewolf, have to consciously make the decision to become mated. That's a bond that holds for life and needs the basis of love and respect for each other. Not something you guys would understand."  
  
Alya looked up to her daddy and smiled at him. Sirius finished eating and set his knife and fork on the plate. His mother still stared at him and his daughter. Alya was still eating. Sirius fed her small bites and she chewed them, slowly and with apparent gusto. She didn't get any meat yet, he just fed her the potatoes and the veggies.   
  
"That's the good girl, Alya. Are you going to get big and strong like who?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Polly?" she asked back.  
  
Sirius laughed. She couldn't say Polaris yet, but her brother definitely was her favourite, so when asked for someone she usually said 'Polly'.   
  
"Is Polaris big and strong?" Sirius asked.  
  
Alya nodded. He fed her another little spoonful of potatoes and said:  
  
"Well, if you say so, then yes, like Polaris. He'll always be a little ahead of you for quite some time."  
  
"Who is Polaris?" Lucius asked.  
  
"Alya's older brother, Lucius," Narcissa hissed.  
  
"Oh. You have an older child still?"  
  
"Stayed with James and Lily Potter. Vega and Polaris. They were the big surprise gift, because we didn't know about that little change in our bodies until Remus didn't transform one full moon. When Pomfrey checked him up she found out he was pregnant. Checking me, we found out that I was, too. That was in our seventh year. Vega was born first, beginning of December and Polaris just a week later. Then we used contraceptive spells, but they seemingly didn't work on us for very long, so along came Alya and Antares. Now we're on the potion and that seems to be better," Sirius explained casually.   
  
'He acts like he were on the best of terms with us,' Narcissa thought.   
  
But Sirius didn't act. He just couldn't be anyone else but himself. And he was determined not to show his daughter a different person than the kind of father she was used to. After the meal he let Alya out of her chair and on the floor, which she started to explore. Until she bumped her head on one of the sideboards. Sirius got up immediately and picked her up and soothed her again. It took two minutes and the inquisitive air on her face returned. She grinned again happily and he let her back down on the floor. When he sat again he pushed the chair a little bit back from the table. Alya came crawling and pulled herself up on his leg.   
  
"A big girl?" he asked her.  
  
She nodded.  
  
"That big girl is going to bed soon," he said.  
  
She shook her head and grinned.  
  
"You think not? I think, you do..."  
  
Narcissa had watched his interaction with his daughter with a disgusted face and Sirius discovered the same expression on his mother's face. He almost felt sorry for them. Before his cousin was able to open her mouth and scold him for cuddling his children, he said:  
  
"Stuff whatever you were going to say, 'Cissa. MY children are being brought up with love. I love them and I want them to know that I do. And in the end I'm getting all the love back. Ever since Alya and Draco have been playing together I haven't seen your son smile even once, except for the time I picked him up and soothed him when he cried and when he played with Alya. Do you even have an idea how much I feel pity for your son, for not receiving love from his own parents? I now know what it means to be a mother and I can only say: shame on you two, you are the most unnatural mothers I will ever have had the displeasure of knowing. Because a real mother would die for her children. A real mother would be ready to push everything to the back to be there for her children. A real mother loves her children and even if she has to discipline them she still does it in a way that the children know she means only their best. Look at the difference between these two children? Your son is just a mobile puppet, 'Cissa. You show him off in silk clothes and when you go home you probably just push him into the hands of your house-elves and stalk off to your own entertainment. Because that's what your mother did, 'Cissa, she's your role model and I pity you for it. You'd have been better off to look at Andy and Dora. Did you ever meet your niece at all? She's the cutest button of a child you can imagine. And she's allowed to be cute and happy and she laughs and sings all day long. That's what my children will do, all of them and nothing, and no one will make them unhappy if I can prevent it. Look at this place! What adjectives come to mind to describe it, eh? Dark. Dank. Dull. Depressing. Dingy. Dreary. And dreadful. If you guys call this elegance then I can only laugh. Think about it."  
  
Sirius stood up from his chair and lifted Alya up.   
  
"Say goodnight to grandmother, darling. Give her a nice wink," he whispered and turned her to face her relatives.   
  
Alya waved her little hand to her grandmother.   
  
"And who do you wish goodnight now? Cousin Draco?"  
  
"Daco!" she squealed and waved at the boy.  
  
"And aunt 'Cissa and uncle Lucius, love!"  
  
"Goo' nigh'!" Alya said and leaned her head on her daddy's shoulder.  
  
"Good night, Alya!" Mrs Black said and was astonished as the little girl gave her a big smile.  
  
Sirius wished everyone a nice evening and went to join Remus, who had taken Antares up to their room.   
  
"Hey, love!" he said quietly and met Remus for a kiss.  
  
"Hi. Did you fight with your relatives?"  
  
"No. Just held them a speech about what real mothers are. And then I made Alya say good night to everyone. She gave my mother a wave with her hand and would you believe it, mother actually wished her a good night. And got a smile from Alya. But then, everyone and their brother gets a smile from Alya. She's really the sunniest child you could imagine."  
  
Once he had changed his little girl and dressed her for the night Sirius sat down and gave Alya a while to suckle on his breast and get some milk. She fell asleep promptly and he could take her down and put her into her cot. He covered her up well, as it was rather cold in the room. As soon as both children were sleeping he cast silencing charms over the little beds, so the children could not hear their fathers, but Sirius and Remus could still hear their children. They got up again and went back to the library, dictating the titles into their Dictaquill. At nine they heard the door opening and Sirius' mother came in. They were sitting together and reading.   
  
"Sirius, don't you want to put your children into a room of their own?" she asked.  
  
"No, mother, they're fine. Sometimes we have to get up at night for them, so it's easier to have them closer. Thank you."  
  
"Very well. Good night. I'll be with father."  
  
She left the room and closed the door. Remus looked at Sirius, surprised.  
  
"Wow. Softening her?" he asked.  
  
"No idea. Maybe this is all too much for her. It's very well possible that my row with father the other day was the cause of his breakdown, you know."  
  
"Even if that is the case, I believe you are right if you said the real cause could be his guilty conscience. What if he did give Lucius or another Death Eater a hint? Then it's his own fault that he lost Regulus. Even on someone of the calibre of your father that must weigh heavily. He must have avoided becoming a Death Eater himself, because he must have known what it meant."  
  
"But Voldemort, and even more so the other Slytherin pureblood families must have asked a 'contribution' to the cause. Father couldn't buy himself out all the time."  
  
"Could he be in financial trouble?"  
  
"I doubt it. The vaults always looked bottomless. Father had a lot of mental weaknesses, but he was always a very good economist. No, he's a bloody coward himself, so he saved his own skin by sacrificing Regulus."  
  
They returned to their inventorying of the library's content. Sirius added a little sign for all the books that had been protected so only a Black could touch them. He could easily feel them with his magic. Going through the shelves he pulled them out and Remus then knew which books not to touch.  
  
Before midnight they looked over the growing roll of parchment. They picked it up and took it up to their room, where they went to the bathroom and then undressed. It seemed that Sirius' mother had sent up Kreacher again to tidy things up better and so the bed was nicely done up and the room was spotless. Sirius was almost scared seeing his mother so subdued.  
  
"Maybe she actually does care for your father, Sirius."  
  
"Maybe. But maybe she is scared of me turning off the money supply. Which I will, at least a good bit. I don't want one Knut to go to Voldemort from this day on. That family is going to change to the Light side and I won't tolerate any Dark activity anymore."  
  
Remus smiled. He had never seen Sirius that determined and self-assured before. He knew that his encouragement and their being together so happy had a large part in this development in his mate. He liked to see his husband that way. He had grown up.  
  
"I love you," he said.  
  
"I love YOU, Moony. You're my strength."  
  
They slept very soon and were able to sleep through until Antares woke them in the morning. Remus went to pick up his son and brought him back to the bed.   
  
"Good morning, my love," Sirius said and kissed his son.  
  
Antares stroked his daddy's face and got a big smile. He pushed his fingers into Sirius' mouth. Pulled them out again and grabbed his little feet. Remus laid down again and watched Antares for a moment, then he sat leaning back to the headboard and pulled Antares on his lap. The baby sat and snapped the nipple and started to suckle. Remus stroked him over the head and smiled. He loved the feeling of nursing. It gave him such a deep connection to his children. Sirius and he had swapped considerably less with Alya and Antares than they had with Vega and Polaris, because the children were two months apart. But they made that up with picking the children up, holding and comforting them frequently. Thus both men were deeply connected with their four little children. Even though they had spent most of their time since the children's birth at Hogwarts, their role models for bringing up their children were certainly Remus' parents.   
  
Alya didn't stir until Sirius, Remus and Antares were already dressed. Their little screening sleeper made them smile so often. Even at home where she shared her bed with Antares she slept on peacefully while he was calling for his fathers.   
  
"I'm sure that this girl would be able to sleep through absolutely everything," Sirius said.  
  
When the two returned from the bath they found Alya on her feet and smiling at them. Sirius pulled her out of the cot and changed her on the bed. Then he dressed her into some Muggle baby-jeans and a t-shirt and jumper. He brushed her hair and took her to the bath, where he quickly washed her and brushed her teeth.   
  
"Ready to take on the day, love?" he asked.  
  
She clapped her hands together and gave him a big smile. He kissed her and said:  
  
"You know, if your daddy was that adorable as a baby I'm amazed that Richard and Venetia haven't simply eaten him up because he was so cute."  
  
Alya gurgled something and pressed herself on her daddy's chest on his arm. Sirius just smiled and the two of them joined Remus and Antares on the landing to go down the stairs and check on the news on Sirius' father.   
  
He was still alive, but barely. Mrs Black seemed to have sat with him most of the night, she looked haggard and tired. The healer was also still there. Sirius looked at the healer and beckoned her aside for a moment.   
  
"He's been unchanged since last night. Barely hanging on. Mrs Black ought to have some breakfast and some sleep."  
  
"I see what I can do. I don't think, she'll come down, but I send Kreacher up with some breakfast for her and maybe she could be convinced to sleep a little."  
  
"Thank you, sir."  
  
Sirius wished his mother a good morning. She barely responded.  
  
"I'll have Kreacher up with some breakfast for you, mother," he said.  
  
He did so and sat down to breakfast with Remus and the children alone. Sirius first let Alya suckle for a while and then ate his own breakfast and gave her some bread to chew on and a bit of hot chocolate milk. They took their time for that. At the end Remus took over Alya and Antares went with Sirius. Sirius returned to his father's room, while Remus went up to continue noting down the books in the library.   
  
Sirius saw that his mother had at least nibbled on the food. He looked at the healer, who nodded.  
  
"Mother, please take a nap, I'll stay here," he said.  
  
After all was said and done these two people had still given him his life and he wasn't able to forget that and just shove them aside. And the 'mother' inside of him didn't allow him to mistreat his parents as they had mistreated him. He could finally get his mother to lie down on the chaise-longue for a while. She even accepted a light sleeping potion from the healer and Sirius covered her lightly with a plaid. Then he sat down at his father's deathbed.   
  
It was a long wait. Sirius' mother had slept for most of the morning. Sirius held Antares on his lap for a while, then let him on the floor a bit and finally lifted him up again so Antares could take his late morning nap on Sirius' chest. Sirius transfigured the chair to an armchair and made himself comfortable on it to offer his son a nice area to sleep. He wouldn't sleep very long anyway.   
  
'I do wish you could see your grandchildren just once, so you'd see what you denied Regulus and I, father," Sirius thought.  
  
Even with his son in his arms it was still a lonely morning. His father held on still, maybe tried to fight, but it was a lost cause.   
  
Antares was still sleeping, when Mrs Black rose from her nap. She looked at the time and then around to see Sirius still sitting at his father's bed with a sleeping baby on his chest. He held Antares in his arms, his head inclined soothingly to the baby and both of them looked adorable. She thought her son might be asleep, too, but he looked up immediately.   
  
"Oh, you're up. Let me give you your chair back."  
  
He returned the armchair to what it was before. Sirius chose another seat in the back of the room. He felt that it wouldn't be long anymore now. And he knew that his mother needed to be there. Finally, after another three hours the breaths his father took became farther and farther in between, and came to a stop with a few shuddering breaths a few minutes after four o'clock in the afternoon. Sirius closed his eyes and sighed in relief. This part of his life was over. His father was only 93 years old, for a wizard this wasn't very old, but Rigel Black had never lived a very healthy life. His mother was sixteen years older and not much better off than her husband.   
  
Antares was holding his afternoon nap on the chaise-longue. Sirius looked back at him to see that he was still safe, stood up and went to his mother. She sat there, quite stiff, knowing that her husband had passed on. Sirius put his hand on her shoulder and quietly said:  
  
"I'm sorry, mother. Please accept my condolences."  
  
"Thank you, Sirius."  
  
Sirius picked up his sleeping son and left her alone. The healer confirmed the death of Rigel Black and filled and signed the necessary papers.   
  
Sirius found Remus in the library, where Alya was asleep on a blanket. Remus looked up and asked:  
  
"Died?"  
  
Sirius nodded.   
  
"Just now. I'm glad it's over. I got mother to sleep and eat a little something this morning, but she was there when he died."  
  
"And now?"  
  
"Have to call in the lawyers. His last will was in their hands. They will have to assemble the remaining family. Of which I'm the head now, how ever little my parents may like that."  
  
He sat down to write the letter, which he sent with the family owl. Then the two of them went down to the drawing room to face whichever family members had shown up in the meantime.   
  
Narcissa was there again, alone this time. Her mother was with her. Then there were several more remote, but no less sinister relatives of minor importance.  
  
"My father died ten minutes ago," Sirius announced quietly, before he greeted any of them.  
  
If any of them except for Sirius' aunt were surprised to see him there, they didn't show it. Sirius turned to Narcissa and her mother and asked them:  
  
"Would you kindly go up and look after mother? She took it quite calm, but I think, she will need you now."  
  
"Yes, I will. You certainly only riled her up, Sirius!" his aunt said.  
  
"I'm not going to fight with you, aunt Augusta. You will have to concede that I am the head of the family now. And you might have to put up with some changes," Sirius shot back.  
  
She rushed out of the room. Sirius turned to the others.   
  
"If you lot want to see him you might go up and have a look and then I suggest you leave and only come back for the funeral and when you'll be summoned by the lawyers."  
  
Remus had to hold back a snicker. That was typically Sirius, he summarily dismissed all of his relatives and sent them packing. Once the four people, some third degree cousins or something, Sirius said, had left, they sat down on a sofa and let their children on the floor. They could hear the visitors leaving straight out without seeing them again later on. Sirius only checked who was left to tell Kreacher how many people would be there for the dinner.   
  
The next days were endless in their dreariness and only once the funeral was over did Remus and Sirius get some rest. They had asked James to bring Vega and Polaris down to London. The two children were set up in a room next to Sirius' and Remus'. They had never been separated for so long before and James said he was quite glad that they were allowed to rejoin their fathers.  
  
"They were getting cranky and missed you terribly," he added.  
  
"Well, we missed them even more! Thanks for looking after them though, we really appreciate it, James."  
  
"Well, we're godparents, aren't we? We loved to have them, only after three days it got more difficult, because they just missed you so badly."  
  
Sirius and Remus were actually quite happy to hear that. They had embraced their little ones happily and the children had not been any less enthusiastic. James had to move on though, so he left almost on the spot.  
  
Sirius and Remus took the children to the drawing room and presented them to their grandmother.  
  
"Mother, I'd like you to meet Vega and Polaris. They're almost two and a half years old. Children, this is your grandmother. That is how you will call her."  
  
Both of the children threw quite dark looks at their grandmother. She looked rather frightening they thought, but they held out their little hands. Mrs Black looked shortly at Vega, then at Polaris. He was the Black heir. And he looked like the Blacks usually did. All of his blond hair had changed to black now and he had the typical steely blue eyes. His temperament corresponded his daddy's, he was lively, inquisitive and loved to laugh. He had a lot of Remus, but it was quite well hidden.   
  
His sister was another carbon copy of Sirius. She showed a lot of promise. She was the self-confident one, always the first at everything: crawling, walking, talking.   
  
"Well, at least you've done your duty to the family," Mrs Black said.   
  
She was back to her old cold self. Sirius refused to fight with her, but he had given her the facts these past days and she had to face them. He had talked with the lawyers behind the closed doors of his father's study, had set up the trust from which his mother would be supported and had given her the order that not one Knut of the family's money would be spent on the Death Eaters and their cause anymore. He was not going to tell her who she would be allowed to see, but she was cut off from any but her trust vault at Gringotts, so she would be unable to access the other family vaults. For the moment and until the last will had been read and the legates divided the family vaults were sealed.   
  
The reading took place two weeks after the death of Rigel Black. About eighteen people were present in the drawing room of Grimmauld Place. Remus took over the children for the afternoon and kept them playing up in the library. Once the reading would be over and the executors of the will would get going they would return to Hogwarts.  
  
The will of Sirius' father Rigel Black was no surprise to anyone. He had a few personal legates, mostly artefacts or books, but the body of the inheritance went to Sirius according to the family statutes. The statutes granted Mrs Black the life-long right to live in the house.   
  
Sirius learned that two of the lawyers were the executors of the will. They needed a few signatures from him which he gave them right there. All of the people who received personal legates were asked to get them on the spot, those who were to receive money would be getting it in the next days. A week after the reading of the will these few problems were solved and Sirius had to go to Gringotts to pick up his new keys and get an overview over the assets.   
  
"Oh my. Won't have to work ever with all that's there..." he said to the goblin.  
  
"Good for you, sir," said the goblin and grinned.  
  
"Some of it will be used in a better way now," Sirius said with a wink.  
  
He made sure that for the time being he and Remus were the only ones who would have access to the family vaults. Everything that was meant to go to someone else was transferred to the respective vaults. Mrs Black's trust vault received regular transfers of a nicely sized amount, but not enough to spend any on Voldemort's cause. Sirius gave her mother her new key and her, that she would have to do with what she received for the household and her personal spending money. It was a good sum for her alone. The house didn't take much of her money, so if she still wanted to give money to Voldemort she would have to take it from her own.  
  
Sirius had looked over his father's expenses in the past five years and had found that about eight thousand Galleons per year had been handed over to Voldemort. That was an awful lot of money. Richard Lupin, as the head of his department, made about four thousand Galleons per year and that was a very high salary. Regular wizards in middle to lower charges of the Ministry rarely earned more than a few hundred Galleons. People in the free trade often made less than a thousand.   
  
"Voldemort will certainly feel that loss!" Remus said and sounded content.  
  
"I hope so. I was even able to stop the last planned payment of four thousand Galleons. That seemed to be the instalment for the first half of the year. We were lucky that my father died when he did, because that made them freeze all movements on our accounts immediately. Half a day later and the money would have been sent."  
  
When they both returned to pick up their children and their notes about the content of the library, which Remus sealed and warded off, so Lucius or someone else wouldn't come and raid it, they met a fuming Lucius Malfoy in the drawing room. The children were up in the library with one of the newer house-elves who looked well after them. No one would be able to harm them there, because Remus had used the "Sanguis familia" spell to cover them. Together with his usual wards they were secure in this room.  
  
"How dare you stop your father's money transfers!" Lucius raged.  
  
Sirius smirked.  
  
"You know, that wasn't even me, that was my father himself. When he died the accounts and transfers were all frozen. When I took over I was asked which of the transfers I would allow and you can bet your ass, Lucius, that I was NOT going to shove any of MY money into your master's dirty ass. Are we clear on that? If my mother wants to donate money she will have to do it from her allowance, which I have made comfortable for her, but which would leave her quite in trouble if she were to give it away to some lowlife like Voldemort. If YOU want to throw away your inheritance on the scum, then that's your business. But out of THIS house not a single Knut, not even one single one of these ugly candleholders will go to that pig you call master. Do I make myself clear enough for your pea brain to understand?"  
  
"You haven't heard the last of us, Black!"  
  
"Oh, I'm sure about that, Lucius. But let me warn you! Once we're done with your 'master' you will not get off the hook! You will go to where you belong, Malfoy, and that's Azkaban!"  
  
"I'm not afraid of you!"  
  
"You aren't? Well, let's see... how many times have we brought you down, even though you were so much older than we are? Must have been at least a dozen. And you saw what we did to your master, Lucius. You saw how he trembled and fled! You saw how little it took us for him to fear for his precious life, which he wants to preserve because he's afraid of dying. Yes, Lucius, you ARE afraid of me. You are even more afraid of us and let me tell you that you do well to be afraid of us. Remus may not say much, but you know he's a force to reckon with. And together, Lucius... together we are unstoppable! Now leave my house!"  
  
Sirius went over to the door, opened it and nodded out. Lucius didn't dare to try and prove Sirius wrong.   
  
"How dare you throw out my visitors?" Mrs Black screeched.  
  
"I warned you, mother. I told you that things would change here. The first thing that will change is that when I am in here I will not allow any of that scum entrance. I don't mind who you see when I'm away, but as soon as I set my foot in here I will not see any of them anymore. Is that clear?"  
  
She backed down.  
  
"Yes, Sirius."  
  
"Very well. This way we will get along, mother. I will not be getting on your nerves very often. The library is off limits to you from now on as is the study. The books will be shut away in the near future. I don't want any of them to fall into the wrong hands. We have made a list of them. You had better not let anyone try and breach Remus' wards, that would have a pretty nasty outcome. Now we'll fetch the children and our stuff and we'll be on our way back to Hogwarts." 


	15. 15 Out on their own!

Title: Baby Boom! 15/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**15. Out on their own!**  
  
It took them only an hour to get their things ready and leave. They took Muggle taxis to the station and rode the night train to Hogsmeade. It was a slow affair, because that train stopped about twenty times in wizarding settlements on the way to Scotland. Only the Hogwarts Express went up there non-stop. But the children were asleep and Remus and Sirius enjoyed some snogging time and a game of chess or two. Once the conductor had stopped by their compartment they had warded it off. They reached Hogsmeade very early in the morning and were expected by a carriage from Hogwarts. Dumbledore had sent it after he had been informed about their return. He waited for them in the Entrance Hall.  
  
"Welcome back, my friends. I hope you had a peaceful journey?"  
  
"Hello Albus! Yes, we had, thank you. The train was a lot more comfortable than the Knight bus, even though it's less safe. But we've warded off the compartment and were undisturbed."  
  
"Good, good."  
  
They went straight to their chambers, where they ate breakfast and told Dumbledore about their three weeks at Grimmauld Place.  
  
"I'm so happy to be back in these bright rooms! You have to fight for every bit of daylight in that house! And it could be quite lovely there if only they'd open those windows," Remus said.  
  
"I can imagine. How did your mother react to the children, Sirius?"  
  
"For a moment I thought they would get through to her, but once father was dead she returned to her coldness. She was quite docile when I set up the new rules though, but I don't think she'll stick to them. But I don't really care what she does. She is on an allowance now and that is set fine for her alone, but she won't be able to spend anything on Voldemort's cause anymore."  
  
He told Dumbledore about the four thousand Galleons he had been able to hold up from being sent to Voldemort.  
  
"And he must have been furious, because he sent Lucius to inquire with my mother what happened to the money. Father has bought his way out of the Death Eaters. That's why he forced Regulus to join. I had taken flight, but Regulus tried to follow the orders. And paid with his life. I'm still not over that, Albus! I just wish I could have helped Regulus more."  
  
"It was too late, Sirius. Someone must have given him away."  
  
"I accused father..."  
  
"How did he respond?"  
  
"Not kindly of course, but he didn't really deny it, so I suppose he actually was the one. This way he would have been free to only 'donate' his money every year and not have to join himself. I found out that the sum he paid Voldemort rose from roughly two thousand Galleons per year ten years ago to about eight thousand in the past five years."  
  
Dumbledore whistled.   
  
"That is an awful lot of money. Could there have been blackmail in the game?"  
  
"If, then it was something entirely between my father and Voldemort, because I haven't been threatened. In fact I have been amazed that we haven't been threatened at all. We've been there for three weeks and my mother didn't even hiss a threat of any kind. Quite amazed me, to be frank. Still, when we had to go to Gringotts together yesterday, Remus warded off the library and one of the younger house-elves looked after the children. There is one very nice one who was ordered not to open the door and not to let anyone in under any circumstances and she didn't. She also looked well after the children. Then I've given mother the rules for when I should turn up in the house. That I don't want to see one of them around at all. I leave her free hand with the house except for the library and the study, which I declared off limits and we've warded them off, so no one can get in. So far the Death Eaters haven't found any counter-spells to Remus' wards yet. But we need to clear that library soon."  
  
"I shall have it organised, thank you for this inventory. Andromeda will be part of the group. She knows where the house is and she has the Black blood needed to reduce and touch the marked books. She will pack them off in special crates. Then we take everything here and enclose it in the secret library. The one you are going to tackle next, Sirius."  
  
Sirius shook his head.  
  
"The secret library? I've never heard about that one before..."  
  
"That would be because it is secret, Sirius. Usually only the staff knows about its existence. And we are all sworn to secrecy, but I am afraid that none of us has really had time to really go through it. Therefore it will become your job. At least until you find your new house. I would like you to establish a proper catalogue. Irma will be helping you with that if you could relieve her during parts of the day at the regular library, Remus."  
  
"Sounds very interesting. I'm quickly becoming a very learnt man! I have read so much in the past years it's a miracle I can still do something with my wand..."  
  
Remus snorted.  
  
"When have you used your wand lately? Your mother HAS noticed that you're doing your magic wandless most of the time, Sirius, and I'm sure Lucius and Narcissa have noticed it as well."  
  
"Then Voldemort only knows there's one more thing he has to fear about me."  
  
"True... yes, Albus, I'll gladly replace Madam Pince so she can join Siri."  
  
"Thank you. Once you find your new house it will be time to set a trap for our esteemed enemy. What do you think?" Dumbledore asked out of the blue.  
  
"YES! Finally! I thought it would never come to be! Do you have an idea, Albus?" Sirius asked eagerly.  
  
"James. And to me it sounds like a good one. Ask him about it tonight."  
  
"We certainly will."  
  
They spent the day resting, napping when the children slept and by the evening they felt quite rested and removed from everything. They had Lily, Harry and James over to share their meal. Little Harry was now an adorable combination of James' lousy eyesight, his unruly black hair and his mother's lovely nose and beautiful emerald green eyes.   
  
"I still wonder why he has to have my negatives and Lily's positives! So far at least he has an even temper. Not so much as Alya, but... quite nice," James said.  
  
The others smiled. Remus told him how Alya had won over little Draco Malfoy. Once they had run out of stories about their stay at Grimmauld Place Sirius asked James about his idea for a trap for Voldemort.  
  
"Oh, yes! I almost forgot. Dumbledore seems to like the idea. I thought that once we have the new house and before we really move in we could let it go through to Voldemort that we're moving out of Hogwarts and into our house together. He will probably try to come and kill us there. So we 'protect' ourselves with the Fidelius charm. Flitwick brought the talk to this the other day. We thought it would be brilliant. We don't need to really perform the charm, but Voldemort will think we have. The Secret Keeper would then be Snape, who has gained our complete trust! And Snape will of course tell Voldemort as soon as we've set up the trap. But we will expect him, the children will be safely at Hogwarts, and as soon as Voldie destroys the door he'll meet Dumbledore, Lily and my humble self. You will be invisible and get in his back as soon as he steps through the door. And the two of you can deck him with everything you've got. We'll take care of the Death Eaters with the Order. Of course we'll have some of them stationed outside, as invisible as you will be. We're pretty good with the Disillusionment charms."  
  
"Sounds feasible. I'll be in," Remus said.  
  
"Me too. That will be sweet!" Sirius said.  
  
"Absolutely!" James said. "And what's best, I have found our house!"  
  
"You have? Really?" Remus asked.   
  
"Yep. It's in Yorkshire. Somewhere not too far away from Scarborough close to North Yorkshire, but still in the coastal region. Just a bit up the hills. Anyway, this is ideal. It's an old castle, not too big, but more rooms than we'll ever need, even if Remus produces another two dozen children to avoid transformations... it's an old wizarding family's home."  
  
Remus swatted his friend. James, Sirius and Peter were the only ones who were allowed to joke about his condition, but that didn't stop him from playfully hitting them. James just grinned sheepishly and showed them some pictures.  
  
"That looks lovely. Why is it on sale?" Remus asked, baffled.  
  
The picture showed a classical castle with four big round towers in the corners, connected by walls and on about three levels the outer walls formed the main body of the houses inside of the castle. On two sides there were a number of floors above the walls and the towers looked quite a bit higher than the rest of the buildings.  
  
"Owners want to leave the country. He's afraid of the Death Eaters. I talked to him, he said he has some relatives in the States and wants to move there. No family left here, only his wife and a granddaughter, as the Death Eaters have killed a good many of them. They were purebloods who intermarried with half-bloods and Muggle-borns in the last two generations."  
  
"Oh dear! I've not got a good feeling moving there then..." Remus said.  
  
"I didn't either, but as I said, I got to speak with the guy. All he has left is his wife and a grandchild. He said if we wanted the house he'd gladly sell it to those who were still ready to fight. Even if we would win he wouldn't come back anymore. He'd rather give the house to us than to any Death Eaters."  
  
"Then let's go and see it together. It'd be a beautiful area," Sirius said.  
  
"I think so, too."  
  
They were all delighted. James and Lily had talked to Dari, Hope, Peter and Sabina and they were all interested to move in together. James had understated the size a bit, Remus thought. When they got there by floo they found themselves in the entrance hall of an old fortress castle. It was decorated in old oak from the rafters on the ceiling high up above to the furniture around the two huge fireplaces in this hall. The fireplaces were situated in the middle of the side walls of a vast room. On one end there was a big oak double door, which marked the main entrance. Near the main entrance on both side walls were double doors leading to the rooms beyond. Two big staircases led up to the next floor of the castle ending in a balcony. Underneath the staircases was an ornate exit to the inner courtyard. The staircases met in the balcony on the first floor and they could see that this balcony came along the outer walls of the entrance hall. There was another set of the same kind of staircases visible from the hall, and another balcony.   
  
The owner of the castle greeted them. He looked a bit glum, but pleased that eight young people were interested in keeping this wonderful house in order.   
  
"Hello, my young friends, and welcome to Green Mountain Castle. I do suppose you would like to take a walk through it?"  
  
"Good morning, Sir Joseph. May I introduce you to everyone?" James asked.  
  
"Yes, please do!"  
  
"Okay, everyone, this is Sir Joseph Green. He has worked for the Ministry for the last sixty plus years but wants to leave the country for good now to join his only remaining son in the States."  
  
James presented everyone and then Sir Joseph gave them a big smile and said:  
  
"I'm very pleased to meet you all. I have read about your exploits against You-Know-Who Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin, I'm very proud to meet you in person!"  
  
"Thank you, Sir Joseph. We didn't have the best feelings when James told us you would leave this behind because the Death Eaters have decimated your family. But then he said you would rather not that your estate falls into the hands of covered up Death Eaters."  
  
"Absolutely not! No matter, how much money they offer. There are several square miles of land coming with this estate and you will get it at a good price! If I know that some people live here who fight this evil, then I know it in good hands and I will remember it fondly but without regrets! So, let us start our walk as soon as Giri has taken your cloaks..."  
  
A house-elf had come in and collected everything the visitors preferred to leave in the hall, then they followed Sir Joseph on the walk through his beautiful house. The girls were very excited, because it was decorated beautifully. They first went into two longish rooms to the left and right of the door to the inner courtyard.   
  
"These here are ante-rooms used for everything you wear outside. That's for this side, the other side, as you've just seen, is the wardrobe to keep cloaks from guests. Both are also good storage rooms for all sorts of knick-knack. The entrance hall here is one of the places we used to have small parties. Let's go through there first. We will come all around the whole castle and then return here."  
  
The corridor led them to the first drawing room. It was quite a big one, covered with thick carpets, because of the cold floors.   
  
"There are a number of drawing and sitting rooms down on this floor. This here is usually our family room. In the last few years we haven't used it so frequently anymore as there were only my wife and one of my grandchildren left. We preferred one of the smaller rooms. Easier to keep warm. Do you have children?"  
  
"Yes, the two of us have four, James and Lily have one so far and there is one on the way here and one there," Sirius explained and pointed at Sabina and Hope.  
  
"That's lovely. The children will adore this house. They will have much to explore!"  
  
"This is furnished beautifully, Sir Joseph. I really like this Oriental ambience," Hope said.  
  
"That was my great-grandfather when he was freshly married. The year was 1815 and everyone ran down to Brighton to admire the Pavilion. So my great-grandfather decided what the Prince Regent could do down there he could do up here. No one bothered to change it much. Some of it does add to the warmth... this next room is a music room."  
  
The music room held a grand piano, a few lovely cabinets with glass windows and a couple of upholstered chairs. They walked through the dining room and then around the corner through the vast kitchens, which followed in three separate chambers. There were staircases leading to the storage cellars. After the kitchens they crossed the house-elf quarters in the back of the castle, which looked friendly and were separated in several nice looking rooms.  
  
"We have fifteen house-elves here. Those who are closest to the family will of course come with us, but if you would like to take the rest of them we would be very relieved, because they are good people who deserve good treatment."  
  
"Which we can guarantee!" Sabina said determinedly.  
  
"Absolutely," the other young women agreed.  
  
"Very good. Thank you, ladies, that relieves me about their destiny."  
  
They crossed a corridor which was cobbled and led to another door to the outside.  
  
"This is where we have our small stables and keep our carriages. That's the opposite side of the entrance hall. This door leads to a small outside couryard, and there is another door to the outside that works similar to the passage to Platform 9 3/4 at King's Cross station, you simply have to walk through the wall. But of course we don't want anyone to do that, so it's somewhat more sophisticated and password protected. The password does not open a door though, it just makes the wall penetrable. We reset it frequently. Across the little passage are the stables. Currently I only have two horses in here. And they are getting very old. There would be enough space for ten of them though. Here are the food stores for the animals and this door leads to the second round of house-elf quarters. And now we're back in the main part of the castle. Now these here are the state rooms. There is the state dining room, the small corner room, the ballroom and another very large drawing room at the end. We have rarely used them, but our house-elves have kept them very nicely clean. Would you prefer a little break and something light to eat or should we go straight to the upper floors? There are two floors more that go all around and then there are all the rooms in the towers and two houses above the two floors. Or I could first take you to the inner courtyard."  
  
"Courtyard!" the ladies decided and followed Sir Joseph through the doors into the impressive courtyard. Most of it was covered with a lawn, but there were a few fountains and statues and some flowerbeds. It was big. A part had a covered passage, almost like a cloister. There were two or three doors to the state rooms. And all of the rooms had windows out to the courtyard.   
  
"There's much you can do with this garden. None of us had an interest in it, so it's a bit neglected," Sir Joseph said.  
  
"That's great. I love to garden. I was always good at Herbology," Sabina remarked.  
  
"Wonderful!"  
  
It was a long day. They made the rounds through the cellars and found good rooms to brew potions.  
  
"Oh, this is a good room for me to transform," Remus whispered when they passed one cellar room that had really solid doors and was empty.   
  
"Yes, that's true. We could make it comfortable enough. And it's not too small either," Sirius confirmed.  
  
There were huge storage rooms in the two or three floors underneath the castle. After the cellars they made a stop in the dining room, where Lady Green had a nice lunch served for all of them. Sir Joseph did the introductions and during the meal they got to talk together.   
  
"You know, this castle is so big... you don't need to go away. I can very well see how much you love the place, Sir Joseph, why the heck don't we buy it, move in, and you stay here with us? We DO plan a trap for Voldemort, but that will turn out well enough this time. We'll have the element of surprise even more than last time, when he tried to take Hogwarts. In vain as you know," Lily said.  
  
The Greens looked at each other and started to smile.  
  
"You are really wonderful young people! With so many to defend this place it could be safe enough. Though we have lost so much in the meantime that it didn't seem like we would leave much behind, you know. But I think we could discuss that with our granddaughter."  
  
"Where is she?" asked Remus.  
  
"Still at Hogwarts. She's in her seventh year. We want to leave after she leaves school. She's lost her parents and her younger brother. Her father was my older son. She was only spared because she had been at Hogwarts. She will be free to go where she likes anyway," Lady Green said.  
  
"It's just - not only have I felt that you really love your home, I also thought we get along so nicely, and found common grounds so quickly! I'm sure we would all love to have more generations in the house. I mean, we already decided to live together four families. None of us are related in any way. We were all friends from Hogwarts. All Gryffindors, except for Sabina, who's a Hufflepuff and Hope, who's a Ravenclaw."  
  
"Are you? I've been a Ravenclaw, too, miss! How is good old Filius?" Sir Joseph asked.  
  
Hope smiled and said:  
  
"You have to ask Remus, Sirius and Lily, they are still living at Hogwarts. They do lots of research there. I think, he's still doing very well."  
  
"Yes, he's still everyone's favourite teacher, too," Sirius confirmed.  
  
"What house have you been, Milady?" asked Sabina.  
  
Lady Green smiled.  
  
"Oh please, do call me Gladys! I was a Gryffindor, too. My granddaughter is a Hufflepuff and loves it."  
  
"Christabel Green! Is that her?" Remus asked.  
  
"Yes, that's her."  
  
"I know her. She's quite a spirited young lady. I'm giving some Defence against the Dark Arts lessons sometimes, so I know most of the students."  
  
"Oh, do you? That's lovely."  
  
After lively conversations and a lengthy break they all went up to the upper floors. There was a lot to discover here. There were many smaller rooms, bedrooms, bathrooms and a large library room. The rooms were built in a large rectangle around the courtyard. They climbed the stairs, turned left and followed the balcony on the first floor to the outer side of the castle. From there they entered a long corridor to the right which took them to the tower in the corner. There were many doors leading to the bedrooms along the corridor.   
  
"My granddaughter and the two of us have our rooms here on this floor. There are seven rooms, connected inside through doors to the bathrooms or wardrobes. You could easily spread one family on one half of each of the two floors and have more rooms than you'll need for a long time!"  
  
They were allowed to look inside some of the rooms. Many were timbered with oak and other woods, some had lovely oak floorboards.   
  
Finally they reached the tower in the corner, which was part of the kitchen below, but up here a spiral staircase started to lead to the upper floors. They crossed the towers and got a walk all around the castle again. The corridor had rather small windows, but it was bright and decorated with fabrics and paintings, armours and there were many cabinets, sideboards and chairs. A carpet was marking the middle of the corridor throughout its length. When they reached the side of the castle they saw another staircase. They went up and came to several more bedrooms.  
  
"This is just on the sides of the castle. There are three more floors up here. All bedrooms. This part is a wood structure, very old and therefore magically fire protected. I will teach you the charms to maintain this part. It's very old, as I said, so to care for it will be worth the while."  
  
"It looks great! Superb view out here!" Lily exclaimed.  
  
"But a load of stairs up," James moaned, fearing that his wife might choose this part to set up their rooms.  
  
Everyone laughed. They went back down the stairs and moved on through the corridor and looked into the rooms behind the doors. There was a large library, directly connected with two spiral staircases to the next floor, where the library continued. Again everything was done in oak, but in these rooms the oak had been painted white.  
  
"The library is an oddity from the late seventeenth, early eighteenth century. My ancestors thought it would be nice to give it the typical baroque feel, so they had everything painted and gilded and all those cabinets set up for the books. The furniture is period, too. I really like the rooms."  
  
"I will love them," Remus mumbled.  
  
Again all of them laughed and Sirius kissed his mate.  
  
"Remus loves books. Period," he explained to Sir Joseph.  
  
"That's nice! I thought this was a disease more common in us Ravenclaws..."  
  
"Some Gryffindors have it, too, I assure you. But my mum was a Ravenclaw, too. And I was probably mainly sorted into Gryffindor because I wanted to go there."  
  
"Splendid! You will discover a few nice things in here then!"  
  
"Yet another library to go through," Sirius moaned.  
  
When Sir Joseph looked puzzled again, Remus explained.  
  
"Sirius had to go through the Hogwarts library more intensively than anyone ever had to before in the last more than two years. He's getting tired of reading by now."  
  
"Even I would do that, probably," Sir Joseph admitted, "Though I've read most of what's in here."  
  
When they reached the next tower on their tour around the second floor, Sir Joseph explained:  
  
"All four towers are seven floors up. The top floor of this one contains the owlery. We have a special bell set up to call an owl down if we need one. So you won't have to march up here every time you want to send a letter, James."  
  
That caused another round of giggles. Then Hope remarked:  
  
"Hell, I won't even know which room to choose, there's so many!"  
  
"That shouldn't be much of a problem. As you have seen these rooms are all in good order, but they will have to be furnished still. In the old days the guests brought their furniture with them when they visited."  
  
When they left after a nice dinner they were all tired, but very happy and satisfied. They flooed back to the Three Broomsticks, because they all still wanted to talk about it and discuss the options. They had told Sir Joseph that they couldn't say anything about their plans before they would be started and that the Greens might want to be on a lengthy visit to their American relatives at that time.   
  
Finally assembled in Sirius' and Remus' sitting room they all stayed quiet for a moment. The price for this house would be quite a lot. Peter and Sabina were very worried, but then Sirius said:  
  
"I've only just found out what I've inherited, people. Old family in this case really does mean old money. I'm talking about something like two million Galleons! The castle would cost eighty-thousand, Sir Joseph said. With that we'd buy it including everything inside the four walls minus what the Greens want to take with them to the States, and the land. I can go to Gringotts and have that sum transferred tomorrow and be done with it. And I wouldn't even feel a dent in my possessions, even if I added another ten thousand, just because the Greens are so nice. Mother would probably go frantic, but I couldn't care less. I want that place, people. My lover would be happy there and I'm sure the children will be thrilled. We'd all be happy there."  
  
Everyone except Remus stared at Sirius with open mouths. James knew he was well off from both sides of his family, but that sounded more than impressive.  
  
"Wow."  
  
"That's what I thought. And I thought I was well off with what Uncle Alphard left me. Anyway, it will be a good idea to spend some of that money. I buy the castle and you just care for the furniture you will need for your rooms. And some of you might throw in another house-elf or two, so the ones who are already there won't have much more to do with all the extra people in the house."  
  
"And we might do some renovation on the bathrooms and all..." Hope said.  
  
In the end Sirius did buy the castle. He had the sum transferred to the Green's Gringotts vault and they started to move into the house. Remus of course had something to do to get it warded before they did start to decorate and furnish their own rooms. Christabel Green had decided that she would rather move to her American relatives, so Sir Joseph and Lady Gladys would also leave the castle once Christabel came back from Hogwarts. They did pack up all their personal favourites and many of the portraits of course, but they left a lot behind. They expected to live much smaller in the States and only packed the furniture they needed for a house with a couple of rooms. Most of the furniture at Green Mountain Castle was antique and not suited for modern houses anyway.   
  
While Remus was busy with the wards all through May there were magical builders working on the renovation of all the bathrooms in the house and adding a couple more. Then, just a month before the baby was due, Peter and Sabina moved into their rooms first. Lily and James followed suit with Harry, then Hope and Dari came together with the Black-Lupin family. They all bid farewell to the Greens, who promised to come and see them if they could ever get rid of Voldemort.  
  
"You'll get an owl from us when that happened!" Sirius promised, already at the door.  
  
The Greens waved once more, grabbed their Portkey and were gone in a flash. Sirius slowly closed the big oak door. He saw that the fire turned green.  
  
"Anyone there?" Albus called.  
  
"Hello Albus!" they all said.  
  
"Did you get settled in well?"  
  
"Of course! Would you like to come and see it now or do you want to wait for the official housewarming party?" Lily asked.  
  
"Oh, there will be a party? I'll wait for that!"  
  
"Good! You'll get an owl in the next days! We still have a few things to get ready."  
  
One of the first things they had to do was to put their floo fireplace on restricted use. They could still floo out anytime, but to floo in one had to know the password, which changed on a weekly basis for security reasons. Then Remus set up the wards good and well around the whole building.   
  
They invited all of their friends to the big housewarming party which would start on Friday, 3rd July and last through Sunday. They even provided a Portkey to Lily's parents.   
  
People could apparate during two small open time slots. Others had received a special password for the fireplace. Within an hour the large entrance hall was filled with guests who were mingling and admiring the medieval character of the hall. They were all waiting for any of their hosts, but it took a while until they heard a great gong up above and a few doors banged. And then there was a storm, as all of those people who weren't pregnant in the house came running down the staircases, screeching their welcomes.  
  
"Hey, hey! Look who's here, we've got GUESTS!"  
  
"Oh, act your age!" Roxanne Lupin cried out.   
  
Everyone laughed and the young people started to go through the guests and greeted them warmly. Upon the gong the house-elves had opened the double door to the state drawing room.   
  
"Well, everybody," Sirius' deep voice boomed over the others, "the wonderland has opened up! Enter through the door to your right please! And then please take a seat somewhere, so we can organise who bunks where."  
  
Inside the big room they could find enough space to take seats. There were a few children that had come with their parents, none older than little Nymphadora, who was six.   
  
Sirius took on as the one to explain where they could go and put their things to.  
  
"Welcome to Green Mountain Castle. Since we don't think the name is very special, we've decided to set up a small urn and collect your ideas for a better name for our humble abode. Just note them on one of the slips next to the urn and drop it in. Best one will be used and gets a special gift! Not now, Dora, but don't forget your idea!"  
  
Everyone laughed and little Dora stumbled back to her mother.   
  
"Okay, now Dari, Remus and Peter are going to spread floor plans to you and then you can go off on the search for your rooms. They are ALL up on the third to sixth floors and above in the towers. For all the children there is one big room and two of our dear elves will take care of them, so mummy and daddy can sleep in tomorrow and on Sunday. The room has been made childproof, too. And I mean mischievous childproof."  
  
Everyone laughed again. They all looked at their plans and decided to go and take up their overnight bags.   
  
"Before you go... dinner is served down here two rooms further on at half past six. Before that we'll have a little drink in this room here. Give it a good half hour. That gives you all an hour to go up to your rooms and get ready!" Sirius called.  
  
"Great!"  
  
Lily took Harry up on her arm and led her parents and her in-laws up to her wing. The Potters had their rooms on the first floor on the south-west side of the castle. Peter and Sabina were right above them. And the other side was taken by Hope and Dari on the first, Sirius and Remus on the second floor.   
  
"Here we are. That's our main bedroom, here's our bathroom, through which we can go to Harry's room. Then we'll have a series of rooms and another two bathrooms. We've prepared these two for you."   
  
Lily opened a door and said:  
  
"You just make up your mind, who takes which of the two rooms. Bathrooms are adjacent."  
  
"Thank you so much, Lily. This is one marvellous place! I'm amazed! To think that you are living in a CASTLE!" Mrs Evans said.  
  
"Did you tell Petunia?"  
  
"I might have mentioned it. She blew up like a balloon... I thought she'd go through the ceiling."  
  
Lily couldn't help snickering a little.  
  
"Well, I leave you to it. As you can see we are already prepared. Just come down when you're ready."  
  
The others took their parents close to them as well, while all the young people went to look for their quarters higher up. With time everyone turned up in the drawing room again. The children were still with them until after dinner, when they were taken up to their common room. The atmosphere was meant to be familiar and was cosy and the rooms filled with laughter, just like he Greens wanted it to be. Of course the party lasted into the night. When they finally walked up the stairs to go to bed, Remus came close to Sirius and put his arm around his mate's waist.   
  
"That was brilliant. Just like there was no war..." Remus said.  
  
"That's how it should always be, love. We have to build that plan soon."  
  
"But not here. They don't know we've moved here yet, we should choose some other place. This is too good to let someone like Voldemort soil its floors."  
  
"Yes, you're right about that. But I have a couple of ideas... first we need to know if Voldemort knows that you're a werewolf. If he does, he'll be sure to force something on us to take place on a full moon, and we can't let that happen!" Sirius remarked.  
  
"That will be Snape's job... and Peter's, but Snape can actually find out actively."  
  
"So far Voldemort only gets teased about these two very powerful young wizards, but we haven't been in many fights yet. He doesn't really know how much we can actually achieve, because he's only really been teased..." Sirius said.  
  
"But he's afraid of us..."  
  
"I think, he is afraid of the unknown power. If his position of being the most powerful wizard is threatened he gets very irritated..."  
  
Remus grinned.  
  
"We should use that to do what he does - instil some more fear. Into him! Have some more legends built around our power."  
  
"What a great idea! We'll do that while we form our plan. I thought of luring him to a place we build as a family vacation site. We will have to drop some hints around Hogwarts, when we're there. The odd Slytherin will pick it up and certainly pass it on. Through Peter and Snape we'd find out if the bait has been swallowed. Of course we'd only drop those hints once we have everything in place."  
  
"That's brilliant, Padfoot!" 


	16. 16 Summertime

Title: Baby Boom! 16/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**16. Summertime**  
  
The party had lasted for the whole weekend. All their friends and relatives made themselves familiar with the castle and enjoyed quality time exploring it together. People sat in small groups and chatted, discussed the war or talked about work and everyday life.   
  
Lily had magically tuned the grand piano and had picked up playing it for a bit, trying to remember all of her childhood piano lessons. She was a bit rusty, but decided it would be a good idea to pick it up again since there was this wonderful grand piano and this even more wonderful music room.   
  
Many among their guests were interested in the library. Dumbledore remembered a lot about the Green family. He strolled through the two large rooms. There were many valuable old books, which the Greens had all left behind.  
  
"While I think it is a shame that they are leaving all this behind I am also very glad this stays in Britain," he remarked to Filius Flitwick, who was with him on that discovery tour.  
  
"Absolutely. A shame, really, the Greens were one of our most prominent Ravenclaw families for many centuries."  
  
"Lady Gladys was a Gryffindor though..." objected Dumbledore.  
  
"That's right, but both their sons came to Ravenclaw again, though young Christabel went to Hufflepuff. Good mixture over all."  
  
"After all this library is now owned by a good few people who will like the books as well and probably add a lot more to it," Dumbledore thought aloud.  
  
"At least five of them, that's true. Young Miss Foster had a lot of Quidditch on her mind, but she was an excellent student," Flitwick agreed.  
  
Down in the family room Rose Evans talked with Martha Potter and Venetia Lupin about household things. The two witches told her a lot about how a wizarding household was run. She was still quite in awe about seeing the house-elves. Of course she had learned a lot from Lily over the years. But it was the first time she really had the opportunity to chat with Martha and Venetia since her daughter's wedding and she enjoyed it a lot.  
  
"This castle would probably be lost without the help of some of these delightful little people," Venetia said.  
  
"I think so, too. They would be in real trouble cleaning this huge thing," Martha confirmed.  
  
"Well, at least you are all lucky enough that you wave your wands and these things get done! Imagine you had to clean all this here as we have to!" said Rose and laughed.  
  
"Oh dear! I'm sorry, Rose, but I'd rather not! Not even with a wand, to be quite honest, though that DOES simplify matters a lot!" said Martha.  
  
"Well, you'd be in severe trouble! As it is they won't even have to clean, because they've got all these lovely little helpers," said Venetia.  
  
"They are really lucky! But it's nice to see so many people filling these rooms, this place is so big! I do hope, James and Lily will have a couple of children, I'm so happy about little Harry! It's so nice to watch Sirius and Remus with their four little ones, too."  
  
"Though it came quite as a shock for me, believe me, Rose! I remember when Remus told us that he was in love... not with a girl, but with a boy. That alone didn't shock us very much. To be honest, at first we were quite happy with the situation, because we thought that at least no 'accidents' could happen to them. He said, he was sorry that he wouldn't give us any grandchildren! And now they have given us four of them. I'm very happy about them, too."  
  
"How could that be? I was really curious..." said Rose.  
  
"The boys got together in their fifth year and after he had watched them for a few months at Hogwarts, Dumbledore told them about a ritual that would make them bond-mates for life. Both of them were still virgins, which was a condition. They had to spend a week keeping skin contact and having quite a lot of sex. And they got through it."  
  
"You mean that any wizards and witches could do the same ritual and be changed like them?" Rose asked.  
  
"No, not everyone. But Remus is a werewolf. Wolves are said to mate for life, which isn't entirely true, but of no consequence in this case. Myth had it for ages that werewolves would be mated for life with the first person they had sex. But it takes a bit more than that as Remus and Sirius learned. But once they went through the rituals both of them gained an enormous amount of magical power. In the year after the mating male werewolves and their partners, if they are male as well, go through a subtle change in their bodies, getting the inner female sexual organs in addition to their male ones. They become fully functioning hermaphrodites."  
  
"But how could they conceive? And give birth?"  
  
"No idea about the conception part, but the birth works totally natural. In a reasonable time before the birth the penis is replaced by a vagina and they give very normal birth. On top of that they also develop breasts and they can nurse their children. Which both of them did for all four of their children," Venetia explained patiently, "and I loved to watch them, it's amazing how they both are committed to these children. With the female reproduction organs they probably also got a lot of estrogen, because they softened down a lot, both of them. None of them developed chest hair for example. Practically nothing on their legs and arms either. So much for recognising a werewolf by the amount of hair on the body!"  
  
"That's amazing! You people are just amazing!"   
  
"I didn't say no to these grandchildren! They're all really cute. And the two pregnancies have given Remus a respite from his transformations. Whenever he's pregnant the wolf stays away and he doesn't transform at the full moon. That also means he has a dead sure indicator of a pregnancy and he'll always know that not more than a month can have passed since conception."  
  
"Do you think, they'll have even more children?" asked Martha.  
  
"I think, it will be very tempting for Remus, because what he goes through each month, once into the wolf, once back from the wolf, is such a painful affair that going through giving birth did not faze him much. Took him thirty hours with Polaris and he hardly reacted more than with a couple of moans. The medimidwitch asked him how he put all the pain away so easily and he calmly explained that the whole process taken together would about amount to the pain he felt during a transformation. It was like a walk in the park for him!"  
  
"I've just seen the odd film containing werewolf stuff, but what is it really like to be a werewolf?" Rose wanted to know.  
  
Venetia explained to her what it meant to be a werewolf. Rose shuddered and said:  
  
"But your son is really a wonderful person..."  
  
"That doesn't protect him from a lot of prejudices unfortunately."  
  
And then Venetia told Rose about the many restrictions that weighed down on Remus.   
  
"And they haven't screamed murder that he has children now?"  
  
"Actually that's what they would love to do. Several reasons why they can't. First is that Remus is legally married with Sirius and that makes Sirius his guardian. None of the children shows even the slightest sign of lycanthropy. And finally it's been made clear to them that Remus is a bit of a special case. He and Sirius are now the two most powerful wizards in the country and everyone hopes they can take on Voldemort. We are all quite convinced they can do it, but of course I fear for their lives terribly because of that. I know they're scheming something like a trap. I just hope it will be over soon. Remus and Sirius are some of the few of Voldemort's adversaries who have stood opposite the man and were alive to tell the tale. Though that particular incident was really embarrassing for Voldemort. They actually sent him packing."  
  
In another corner of the library Remus, Ted and Andromeda Tonks discussed the contents of their new library.   
  
"I'm sure you've gone through a lot already... anything special in here?" Ted asked.  
  
"Quite a lot of first editions of many pretty well known books. I've found one of Most Potente Potions! There must be a few ten thousand books in this house. As you've seen there are book cabinets down in the family room and in many of the corridors. Clearly the traces of a Ravenclaw family! Sirius starts going through as soon as he's done at Hogwarts."  
  
"I thought he was done with that?" Andromeda asked.  
  
"The main library. But you might know that there are tons more books around in that place than just the main library. When you took out the stuff of Grimmauld Place you added yet another huge bunch. Siri has gained an amount of book knowledge you wouldn't believe it! He's amazing. And he really picks up fast, too... he used to have such a hard time studying. He did, but it was always a huge piece of work to get him to sit down to study. Now he's going through those books so quickly!"  
  
"That's great. Even if it is an immensely boring job, no one will take all that knowledge away from him!" Andromeda said.  
  
"He knows that. He's found loads of things, much of which Lily and I use as the basis for our new spells."  
  
"Woe to Voldemort then," Ted remarked and grinned.  
  
There was time to play some Quidditch, too. Enough players were found to form three teams and a mini tournament was played with lots of laughter. Some people wondered about the openness of their actions, but James told them not to worry, as the castle looked to the Muggles like a ruin, just like Hogwarts.  
  
"We're also just trying to figure out how to make it unplottable. There's lots of reference to that in the Black library and we're going to look that stuff through for this," Sirius said.  
  
At the end of the party, just before the guests started to leave they picked up the urn with the name propositions. There were only six, but out of them they chose Mischief Palace in an instant.  
  
"So - I guess, you wanted to know what we will name our house now, don't you? It's Mischief Palace and the person to enter the suggestion was Filius Flitwick. Congratulations, Professor, you will be sending an owl as soon as we figured out the best kind of gift for you," Sirius said with a smirk.  
  
"Oooh, I'm sure they will go and do the new name of their home honour, Filius, you're warned!" said Minerva and everyone gasped, because she actually grinned!  
  
With the last goodbye from the last guest the eight young people all dropped into the sofas and armchairs in the family room.   
  
"Phew! That was good!" Sirius said tiredly from Remus' lap where his head currently rested.  
  
"Absolutely great! That was the most fun we had since Hogwarts," Peter confirmed.  
  
He caressed Sabina's belly. She smiled at him and said:  
  
"Soon, dear! I can hardly wait."  
  
"Neither can I! But until then those five little ones make it easier for us to wait..."  
  
"Four of them are now off to bed!" Remus declared and lifted Sirius from his lap to get up and grab a couple of his children.  
  
Sirius grumbled at being dropped so unceremoniously, but he got up and got the remaining two of his children, Alya and Polaris.   
  
"Say goodnight everybody!" Sirius told them.  
  
The children complied and went around for goodnight kisses. James got up and took it on himself to take Harry. The tiny boy got his kisses, too and the three men took their children to bed. The remaining people started to discuss their evening's activities. James returned first, Sirius and Remus had a bit more to do.  
  
Sirius sat on the bed of his older children and read them a bedtime story. Since Vega and Polaris had been used to sharing their big bed at Hogwarts, Sirius and Remus had decided to let them share their bed for a while longer. They thought that at one point they would ask for their own and by then it would be nice for them to have someone to cuddle. In the second room they had so far decorated for the children Alya and Antares shared another big four poster.   
  
"That's it, my little ones, now it's off to sleep for you!" Sirius said, banished the book on the sideboard and got up from the bed.   
  
Both children stood up on the bed to get their good night hug and a couple of kisses from Sirius, who held the duvet open for them to crawl under. Vega grabbed her favourite teddy, Polaris had a monkey and both slipped under the duvet, which Sirius placed around them.   
  
"Goodnight, my loved ones! Sleep well and sweet dreams..."  
  
"Goodnight, daddy," Vega mumbled.  
  
Sirius looked down on them for a few minutes, then he turned and left the room. There was a single candle burning above the door for them, which he left on. He closed the door up to a small opening left open and joined Remus, who was coming out of the other children's room. They held hands, shared a quick kiss and went down to meet the others.   
  
"Well, now that we're among ourselves I think, we should talk about that trap for Voldemort," Lily said.  
  
"We have to take our time in preparing that well. Nothing should go wrong with it..." said Hope.  
  
"But it would be good to do it soon. He's almost deprived of Death Eaters now. I'm quite sure that his other followers will back down, once he's gone," said James.  
  
"Well, how about that then... let's find some not too big house somewhere a bit far off, where we could set up a vacation place. Then we could drop somewhere that this place still has to be covered with wards and give a date when we want to do that. Say, we could meet at Hogwarts and discuss it briefly. I'm quite sure that someone there would take that straight to Voldemort. Through Snape we could find out, if the guy got the bait," Sirius offered.  
  
"That's a lot better than letting anyone of them in here. I was actually thinking, that I didn't want to set up that trap here!" Dari said.  
  
"Quite right. Neither do I. That's why we thought of this," explained Remus.  
  
"It sounds like an easy set-up. And then? How do you think we can play this out?" asked James.  
  
"You guys, the Order and a few Aurors could take on the Death Eaters outside. We'd welcome Voldemort together with Dumbledore on the inside. I'm quite sure he'd not come in with a ton of people, just a few..."  
  
"On the contrary. He'll want to show off in front of his Death Eaters," Hope objected.  
  
"So there we have a problem. How could we get him to come alone? Or almost alone..."  
  
"Well, he doesn't have all that many of his Death Eaters left, now does he?" asked Sabina.  
  
"No, we estimate the remaining crew to about fifty, but about twenty of them are his elite, some of them quite formidable wizards," said James.  
  
"Then we could take them on outside. I do think, we could gather at least four times as many to give them hell, while Sirius and Remus take care of Voldemort," Peter said.  
  
"All in the open? We'd still need something that would lure Voldemort out. That would be Sirius and Remus. He really wants them."  
  
"A rather questionable honour..." mumbled Remus.  
  
"But something to hang him up on. I'm sure, he'd come running for a chance to get rid of Sirius and Remus. Or, maybe he'd come out even faster if he knew that only one of them is there."  
  
"That's a very good idea, James! Because he knows that we have a lot more power when there's two of us. One of us needs to hide then. And Voldemort needs to think there's only one of us around."  
  
"How does it feel to know that someone like Voldemort fears you two?" Peter wanted to know.  
  
"Terrifying none the less, Peter," Remus said, "and it weighs heavy that we are to take such an important role in that play. I would rather see my children grow, you know."  
  
"We have to find a good site, which would bring the advantage of the terrain to us," Lily remarked.  
  
"That is going to take a while. I think, you could look into that, Dari, if you sneak around the country no one will think anything about it, you're a reporter."  
  
"Consider it done. What are we looking for?"  
  
"Some kind of a house, I think it should be surrounded by a bit of forest in the best case. A bit hilly would be good, too. And not too close to any lived in areas..." James ticked off on his fingers.   
  
"Duly noted. I'll look around."  
  
"I've got the place!" Dari called.  
  
It was near the end of August, when Dari came barging into their castle home with the news. But before she could pass her information, Sabina went into labour and that kept the household on edge for the rest of the night. Siri and Remus declared everyone to babysitters and helped Sabina. Peter was ordered to stay with his wife and then the medimidwife was called in through floo. She received a special password and turned up only a short while after the call. Sabina went through a tough time. Peter went through an almost as tough time. He couldn't see her suffer and it took Sirius' and Remus' combined efforts to keep him just calm enough for Sabina to go about her job.   
  
Finally, on the mid-morning of the 26th August, Paula Pettigrew was born. Peter was overwhelmed and Sabina was exhausted, but well enough to take in what had to be done with her daughter. She was quite glad to get Remus' and Sirius' help. The medimidwife had thought it very strange that two men were around Sabina not only to help, but to tell her exactly what to do. Only when there were four little children in the room early in the morning and when she was told that the two had given birth to them and nursed them all four did she understand. James and Lily took them back out again after they had seen that their daddies were still around, just unavailable.   
  
Peter fell in love with his little daughter on the spot. He beamed, held her on his arms and said:  
  
"I can't believe we have her, Sabina! And she must be about the first girl in a century, usually the Pettigrews just produce boys! I'm so happy!"  
  
"I am, too, Peter. She'll be good for us. Someone to hold on to."  
  
Once mother and daughter had found some sleep the others marched down and listened to Dari's proposition.  
  
"Well, it's an old cottage, needs some repair and is a wizard house. It's been owned by some old codger until seven years ago, when he died without any legal heirs. So it's now fallen into disrepair for a good bit and can be bought for... hold yourselves... six hundred Galleons from the Ministry! As you asked for it's in a rather hilly area and there's a lake nearby. Forest passes on one side, the other is free, but away from the next village by quite a bit. We could work on it a bit more openly than we would if we really wanted to keep that place. Like doing the roof first, painting it the Muggle way and so on..."  
  
"Sounds good, Dari. Really the kind of thing we look for. We'll have to work with Lily and my new invisibility charms for those who are waiting outside. They may only see us working on the house. I'll come and have a look at it with you tomorrow, okay?" Sirius offered.  
  
"Sure!"  
  
"And who knows, maybe the people at the Ministry let us use the house for free... after all, we're trying to get rid of the menace of the world for them. Who is responsible for the sale at the Ministry?"  
  
"Someone in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Do you think, we should contact your dad, Remus?"  
  
"Definitely. He'll pull some strings in the department."  
  
When the next Order meeting took place they brought up their ideas. Snape had some objections, which were of course regarded as important, since he was inside of the Death Eaters and knew about the risks best. But together they figured out how the information could be passed through to Voldemort in a way to make him swallow the bait.   
  
"He's complained that I haven't been able to give him any news for a while, he'll jump on it if you want me to pass this on. I can always tell him that Albus has talked about it to someone else and that I've overheard the story. Just give me your go ahead when you have the okay you need. I'll give you the meeting dates and places for Pettigrew to go and listen in. We have to be absolutely sure about when he plans to attack."  
  
"Good, that is a good start in the right direction then. Richard, I am sure you could do something about the use of that house?"  
  
"No problems. It's one of the lawyers in my department who's handling that sale, I'll call it off for a while. It can be handed to the Aurors for their use for the time being. Inside the Ministry we can always say that they will use it as a training ground. They will leave you free hands there and will be at hand for help. Even Barty will agree to that. Since every Death Eater caught is a menace less for him he should let the Head Auror handle the case."  
  
"No one can go there except for us until we are ready. The Death Eaters will certainly spy on us and we must be seen around the house working on it..." Lily said.  
  
"On the contrary. From on next week there will be twenty Aurors on the premises, together with another twenty Order members and they will all be under your new Invisibility charms. How long does that one last by the way?" Dumbledore said.  
  
"Until it's taken off. It needs a counter-charm. Both will be classified by the Ministry."  
  
"Very good."  
  
"I agree, that there should be Aurors and Order members around. And we have decided that Voldemort only gets to see either Sirius or Remus at all times. We could always talk about how one of them has to stay with the brood or something. They should believe that and that should also lull Voldemort into thinking that there's only one of them around. He'll decide to attack more easily then, don't you think so, Severus? In reality the one who's not to be seen will of course be covered with the Invisibility spell," said James.  
  
"He does seem to have some healthy respect of them as a team," Snape admitted.  
  
"Well, I'll have the Aurors ready. I know that the Invisibility spell will not be out there for everyone to use freely, so I need those of you who can cast it to cover the Aurors," Moody said.  
  
"We'll send you an owl and will be there, as soon as we can start," Lily promised.  
  
Two weeks later, an old house that looked like it was a rather derelict, but lovely cottage, started to buzz with activity. The Aurors and Order members had a boring job the first few days, while the Marauders worked on the cottage, but in their invisible state they were able to see a number of things going on around the cottage. There were lots of Death Eater visits to spy on the Marauders. With every one of those spying visits the Aurors grew more attentive and got themselves ready for the day of the awaited attack. They had prepared a code for the Marauders to go into action as soon as the Death Eaters decided to attack them.   
  
The Death Eaters chose a very early morning, apparating and taking spots around the cottage where they awaited the Marauders for an ambush. One Auror quickly disapparated to the Mischief Palace to inform the Marauders. Lily cast the Invisibility spell on Remus, who apparated alongside them to go about their daily tasks at their normal time, as if nothing was awaiting them there.  
  
The Aurors and the Order Members had stocked up and were ready to apparate on the site as soon as they were informed, too. One Auror apparated home to the Auror Headquarters and informed Moody:  
  
"There are about forty Death Eaters and You-Know-Who is with them, sir."  
  
"Very well. We have another forty Aurors ready to apparate in thirty minutes. We expect to find the battle in full swing already. How many are you there?"  
  
"Thirty, all counted. We should get along quite far already. The Marauders have only just arrived, I suppose the Death Eaters will wait for another few minutes before they attack."  
  
"Very well. Return and tell them we're in a waiting position."  
  
Back at the cottage James, Peter and Lily had started to paint on the outside of the cottage, to get the parts between the beams white again. In the days before they had removed all of the weeds around the house, to free the walls. Now they were happily going up the scaffolds to start on the top and paint the Muggle way, because that seemed to be a lot more fun. Dari and Sirius were on the inside, starting on clearing the rooms of all the debris. Remus was with them, but of course he didn't do very much, because he was supposed to not be there at all. Two invisible Order members, Dumbledore and McGonagall were also on the inside of the cottage, while the older Potters, Venetia and Richard and their daughters were among those who were going to help the Aurors.  
  
Silently the Death Eaters neared the cottage, not even suspecting that the Marauders could be anything but alone. It was a sunny late summer morning and nothing was heard besides the occasional remarks and laughter from those working on the cottage walls. Insects were humming, birds were chirping, but the sudden silence from the birds around them warned the Marauders of the approach. They got their wands ready and whipped around in the same moment that the Death Eaters and Voldemort turned up on the scene.   
  
James had his first stunners out before any Death Eaters were even able to utter a word. That was the signal for the Aurors and Order members to carefully cast one stunner after the other and for Remus to cast the anti-apparition ward. Voldemort tried to vanish on the spot, noticing that this was a set-up, but found himself right back on the ground because of the effective ward. He swore and turned to cast Avada Kedavra curses, but he didn't see anyone but the Marauders on the scaffold. And then he saw Sirius coming out of the cottage. With a grunt he threw another Avada Kedavra curse, but Sirius jumped aside and dodged the green flash of light.   
  
Unbeknownst to Voldemort he had already Dumbledore in his back, together with Minerva and the two started to curse him with Impedimenta and other slowing curses. Then they ducked down on the grass, because a moment later there were hundreds of the sharpest knives flying at Voldemort. He was still unable to move fast and was hit by a whole swarm of those knives, wounded to the death in the midst of his stunned followers. The knives had slaughtered him and blood was flowing in all directions, he was screaming at the top of his lungs, but it didn't save him. With more than relief the defenders of the Light noticed that Voldemort had not been ready to meet death and conquer it just yet. He sank down, the knives still attacking him violently until he was completely and utterly dead. Silence at first as everyone on the spot was out of words, then a scream:  
  
"MAAAAASTER!!!!!!!"   
  
It was Rodolphus Lestrange's voice that screeched through the air. He threw himself on Voldemort's body, only to become another victim of the knives, before anyone could do anything.   
  
The Death Eaters had been subdued in a matter of minutes. By the time the Aurors under Moody arrived they were just in time to catch the last ones who tried to get away, but couldn't because of the anti-apparition wards. Remus had set those wards specifically that no one could apparate out, but everyone could apparate in. He smirked as Sirius countered his Invisibility spell. Everyone else who was invisible was counter-spelled as well and soon the united Aurors and Order members and a reporter or two who were among them were dancing over the patch of grass that was once a nice lawn. Everyone joined in and all of them were hooting and laughing. Eleven years of precious little reasons to laugh and be happy were coming to an end.  
  
Dumbledore took the initiative as usual:  
  
"Everyone! There will be a better time to celebrate tonight. Today we have to clean this here up. Please take all the suspects back to the Ministry!"  
  
All the masks came off the Death Eaters first. Twenty-eight men and eight women were found and most of them were known to at least one person around them. The most prominent Death Eater was of course, Lucius Malfoy, who was there next to his wife. Sirius grinned, but he really felt sorry for Draco Malfoy who would have to grow up without his parents.   
  
Moody got some order into his Aurors and there were two of them to one Death Eater. Remus lifted the ward again, so that they could apparate their prisoners to the Auror Headquarters. As soon as they were gone Richard left to get the Minister on the scene as a witness.  
  
The remaining people stood around the two bodies, which looked terrifying. The knives had slashed them, cut off limbs, cut deep gashes into every bit of their bodies. Voldemort's face was still recognisable, but Lestrange was completely destroyed. Sirius and Remus had called their knives off, but it had been too quick.   
  
"Nothing we can do about it. He must have been really dedicated to follow his master to the death like this," Dumbledore said.  
  
"You could call it dedicated, I call it fanatic," said Sirius.  
  
"Yes, maybe."  
  
"Wonder, how Bella will react when she hears about it," Sirius went on.  
  
"She has to be told in any case. After all they were married."  
  
Sirius and Remus both sighed. Sirius closed his eyes and admitted:  
  
"Even though we knew that he couldn't live on it's horrible - I've killed. Two people. Their death will be on my hands forever..."  
  
"You're not alone, Sirius, we cast this spell together," Remus reminded him quietly.  
  
"And you did stick out your neck for the whole wizardkind, Sirius!" Peter cried out.  
  
"Yes, but you were with us the whole time, you could have been hit with an Avada Kedavra at any moment," Sirius objected.  
  
At that moment, the Minister appeared on the scene with Richard and several members of the Wizengamot.   
  
"Good day, ladies and gentlemen! Would you care to give us a report of what happened here?" the Minister asked.  
  
"Good morning, Beth. I will sum it up for you, if you will take my statement," Dumbledore said.  
  
"Yes, Albus, please do."  
  
Dumbledore went over everything that had gone on, then the Minister asked a few questions to the others in the crowd and finally nodded with a smile on her face:  
  
"Mr. Black, Mr. Lupin, we have much to thank you for. I would be pleased to see you at the Ministry in a week's time to officially thank you. You all have helped to free us from the greatest menace that our kind has known for many centuries. I have been around when Grindelwald was at his worst and Albus will agree with me that it was not half as bad as things have got to be now! I am very old now, but I wanted to see us through this war. The Ministry is in great disarray, too, so we shall have some work to clear it up. Expect news from the Wizengamot in the next weeks!"  
  
Two hours later they were all back to the Mischief Palace, even Dumbledore and McGonagall, who had to go up to Hogwarts. Term had started and Minerva had left her classes unsupervised for the day.   
  
"We'll prepare a celebration tonight. You're welcome to the feast at Hogwarts," she promised.  
  
"Thanks, Professor! We'll be there!"  
  
Hogwarts was brimming with activity and guests that night. By the time the Marauders arrived at the castle the Daily Prophet had already an extra edition out with the news and the whole wizarding world had gone crazy! Everyone and their brothers celebrated on the roads, in Diagon Alley, in Hogsmeade, even in the midst of the Muggles! School had been cancelled for the rest of the week and all the students were allowed free time to celebrate with their families.   
  
The Great Hall had to be enlarged to hold all the guests. Families should be together at such times, Dumbledore had decided and the school owls were busy finding the parents and siblings of the Hogwarts students.  
  
Sirius looked over to the Slytherin table. Its occupants were partly subdued, but Sirius noticed that there was a good number of students and their families who looked relieved. Then he let his glance go over the other tables. Even though the Hall was larger than usual it was apparent that there were fewer students these days. Many families had fled the country and it wasn't sure that they would be coming back.   
  
Before the feast started, Dumbledore stood up to speak a few words:  
  
"I don't have to tell you why we are congregated here like this. You all know already what happened this very morning at a small cottage somewhere in this country. For once I can say that the Daily Prophet has told the story in full accuracy. Our world has been rid of the darkest Dark Wizard of all times. I regret to say that with his death the line of Salazar Slytherin has come to a sad end. He was the last descendant and as far as we know Lord Voldemort does not have any children. So tonight is for us to commemorate all those who have died in the past eleven years. All those who were killed because someone had the nerve to declare who was worth living and who was not.   
  
Let us not forget that many have died following a master that was not a leader, but a slave owner. I do not know how well most of you were aware of the fact that his followers enslaved themselves to him unconditionally. I know of only one single man who was able to get away. I know of at least seven who were killed by their master's own hand for trying to leave his fold.   
  
And finally let us not forget that many have refused to follow Lord Voldemort and have paid for that decision with their lives."  
  
Dumbledore threw a glance to the direction of the Slytherin table, where some students sat with tears in their eyes, because many of them had lost relatives left and right and were only spared when attacks on their families happened while they were at Hogwarts.  
  
"I would like to take this opportunity to once again express my sympathy and condolences for their losses. I would hope that they know that this community will not leave them alone in the world."  
  
On all house tables, heads were turning in the direction of house- and classmates, many in sympathy and accordance with the headmaster's words.   
  
"In remembrance of all who have died - I would like us all to stand and keep a minute of silence."  
  
Everyone got up. Not one remained seated. For a full minute one could have heard a hair dropping on the floor of the Great Hall. When it was over, Dumbledore said:  
  
"Thank you all. Now that we have given our respect to all who left us and all those who are left behind without their loved ones we can move on to the good reason for our feast tonight. We will have peace again. You will all be able to walk without fear again. We will all have a chance to build up our society again and we will have a lot of work to do this. So let us celebrate. Let us celebrate life and the return of peace!"  
  
With these words the food arrived on the tables. There was a lot of applause for Dumbledore's speech. Then the people started to relax and eat and the longer the meal lasted the more relaxed everyone was. Dari was sitting with Hope at the Ravenclaw table. The two of them chatted with some of the seventh years, people they still knew from their own school years.   
  
The rest of the Marauders enjoyed a good time at the Gryffindor table.   
  
Of course the whole of the wizarding world was delirious for weeks. 


	17. 17 The Next Generation

Title: Baby Boom! 17/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
**17. The next Generation**  
  
"Daddy, when do the letters come?" squealed Antares.  
  
"They come when they're sent, love," Sirius replied calmly.  
  
It was a normal early summer morning at the Mischief Palace. All the adults in the castle were looking around and checked that all of their children were coming to the breakfast table. Vega and Polaris had just returned from their first year at Hogwarts, both proud little Gryffindors. They were full of stories of their adventures since they had been home last over the Easter weekend. The smaller children all stared at them with big eyes. There were three more who expected their letters this year, Harry, Alya and Antares.   
  
Remus looked around the table. Now that the whole family was assembled, it did look frightening for anyone outside of the Marauders. Sirius and his four children had received another two siblings, Ryan, who was now seven and Quentin, who was four. Remus had given birth to both of them, because the pregnancies had given him a respite from his transformations.   
  
For the past seven years Remus did have the Wolfsbane potion, which at least kept him so sedated that he could actually stay around his family during the full moons. He lived his life peacefully, doing a lot of research and working from home. Sirius had considered a career after Voldemort's downfall, but then decided he liked the family life more and wanted to be there for his children. They had spaced them out to get some rest between the children, but now that the older ones went to Hogwarts he thought he had little to do anymore.   
  
James was still working as an Auror but these days he had a lot less work. Lily remained to be a Ministry employee, but she had changed to the Department of Mysteries in the meantime. Harry had received a couple of younger siblings. In June 1982 a sister named Hannah joined him. Two years later a boy named Brian followed, in January 1988 there was another boy who James and Lily named Matthew. Now, in July 1991 Lily was pregnant with another child, expected in early September. This group of children broke a long tradition of only children in James' family. Sirius and Remus, who were home full time, looked after the children during the day. Since James was on calling duty most of the time, he was often available, too.   
  
Peter had worked his way up and now co-owned the apothecary of his in-laws. Sabina and he took turns in working there. Their oldest daughter now had two younger siblings, Howard and Belinda, six and three years old.   
  
Finally Hope and Dari were still in their jobs, but both had wanted another child and this time, Dari had become a mother, so their son Kevin Foster was joined by a little sister in July 1985 who was called Julia Sanchez.  
  
All grandparents were often seen at the Mischief Palace. The house had undergone little changes, the Marauders had worked a lot on all the rooms to restore them and in the towers a lot had been done to make most of them habitable. The older children knew every nook and corner of their castle home and playing hide and seek had a never ending appeal to them. They had to limit the game to one floor when they played it.   
  
Fifteen children at the table was an adventure! The house-elves of course brought on excellent food. The adults and children alike enjoyed the meals at the Mischief Palace. All adults saw to it that the children were at the table for every meal and that they ate properly.   
  
On this particular morning the sun was already so high up it shone in through the windows to the inner courtyard and the family was assembled for a hearty breakfast before they would all go out and play around the house. Peter was getting ready to go to work and wished his three children a nice day.  
  
Dari was already off to the office as she had to start early in the morning. James looked out one of the open windows and saw that there were a few owls coming in. Some of them turned out to be Hogwarts owls and he sighed in relief. For days he had been pestered by Harry asking when the school owl would finally come.  
  
"That looks like some of you will go to Hogwarts in September!" he called.  
  
"Yay!"   
  
All three of them jumped up from their chairs and took their letters from James. The other school owls brought the letters for Vega and Polaris.  
  
"We'll send the answers back and next month we'll shop for the school supplies. That's well early enough," Sirius decided.  
  
When Minerva had the list of the new Hogwarts first years ready she smiled. Three letters would go to the Mischief Palace this year and there would be three little Marauders coming to Hogwarts in addition to the two she already had up in Gryffindor tower.   
  
"Where will those three land, I wonder?" she said to Albus at dinner.  
  
"I should expect one or two at least up in Gryffindor tower," Albus replied.  
  
"I think so, I do expect the little Potter there. I hear little Antares looks like Sirius, but has Remus' temperament and character traits. Could go to any of the houses."  
  
"And his sister looks like Remus and has Sirius' character."  
  
Minerva made a face and said:  
  
"Over all, they're all dangerous! I know they've done quite a good job in bringing them up fairly disciplined, but once here... there's six of those Black children by now, and they're all still coming here. They are bound to do some damage!"  
  
"Take the other Lupin bunch into the fold, Minerva. We have Roxanne's twins and Samantha's daughter. And then there will be a few of Remus' older and younger brothers' children as well."  
  
"But I have to say it IS good to see that so many people have decided on having children! We've had a steady increase of new first years since about three years. Before that it was all downhill. Now we get a number of over forty per year and the way it looks it will be even more in the coming years."  
  
"I have kept an eye on that. Seeing the Book of Names the school governors have already agreed on granting us additional teachers for the core subjects. We're still trying to decide whether the teachers should be split on two houses and teach all years or whether they should split into one teacher for the first four and the other for the older three forms."  
  
"It would mean a lot less work, Albus. I know that I could do my duties as Headmistress a lot better. I'm happy to hear that. But it will mean finding a few good teachers!"  
  
"We have one or two years of time before we have to recruit them. One year at least. I do have a few ideas though..."  
  
"You're thinking of some of the Marauders, don't you?"  
  
Albus smiled.  
  
"Actually, I do! They were some of the best students Hogwarts has ever seen! Why should they not come and teach?"  
  
"Who in particular would you want? Lily would be great to teach Charms."  
  
"She is one I'm thinking of. Remus for Defence, maybe James as the other Defence teacher. With these two we might actually break the jinx on this position. I start to doubt my own abilities to find good teachers. And there's still Sirius for Transfiguration."  
  
"You ARE aware that Severus is still on the staff? They did work together halfway decently in the Order, but I do worry what happens if they come and teach..."  
  
"They might make up for some of Severus' blatant favouritism, Minerva."  
  
She frowned.  
  
"That would mean you would allow them to display their own favouritism. I do not support that at all, Albus."  
  
"I do think that neither Lily nor Remus would show favouritism, Minerva. And I am quite convinced that we can reduce James' and Sirius' to a minimum. Besides, in a way I do allow Severus to display his. I could stop him if I wanted to."  
  
Minerva sighed.  
  
"We should try to get Severus to stop deducting points for no reason. Shortly before the end of term he deducted thirty points from a Ravenclaw student for being late to class. The girl told Filius that there were three Slytherins coming into the classroom after her and they were spared. And she said she was on time. But the thirty points of course put Ravenclaw behind Slytherin for the house cup."  
  
Now it was Albus' turn to sigh.   
  
"I know about that incident. I have warned him that he has to watch himself. And I do have a clear maximum point deduction decided for offences like lateness to class as you have seen."  
  
"I am glad for that, Albus. None of the other teachers ever takes more than five points for students being just a few minutes late. He takes large amounts even from first years in their first few days when they still have to find their way around the castle. He's been very unkind to Vega and Polaris Black in particular. That lets me fear how he will treat Harry and his younger siblings, knowing they're James' children."  
  
"I am aware of that. But it is very difficult to find any old Slytherins who would want to become teachers. Besides the fact that many of them would make for much worse teachers than Severus. And we do need at least one of them. I would hate a situation when I'd have to give the head of Slytherin house to a non-Slytherin teacher."  
  
"He applied for the defence position again."  
  
"I have recommended that he should not. But of course if he wants to apply it is his problem when he gets another rejection. I do think that Defence against the Dark Arts is too important to have a someone like Severus Snape teach it. I really need a good teacher for the subject. Someone who can motivate all students. Remus would do the best job, I think."  
  
"He'd be a good teacher, no matter for what subject you'd hire him, Albus. He's a good mediator, too..."  
  
"But that is not for another year. We shall see how Severus develops. If all else fails we will ask the school governors to supervise his classes for a while."  
  
Diagon Alley was not new territory for the three children who would start Hogwarts, they had been taken there lots of times before, but of course the place had a new meaning now that they would be equipped for the boarding school.   
  
Remus had home-schooled them. He had done a pretty good job with it, too. The upper floor of the library was a room with a lot of sun. A nice big table had been set up where the children spent a part of their day in school.   
  
They came from Gringotts and Sirius asked:   
  
"Where first?"  
  
"We only need our books and some supplies like parchment and potion ingredients," said Vega.   
  
"We'll do the books last, you don't want to carry them around all day. So why not start with the robes?" Remus suggested.  
  
They all trooped to Madam Malkin's and from there to Ollivander's, then on to buy the trunks for the three first years.   
  
They day of course included a stop at Florean Fortescue's, where the whole crew ate some ice cream. They were also allowed a trip to Gambol & Japes to look at the newest magical jokes. And finally there was the spree at Flourish & Blotts, where they had to buy three sets of the first years' books and two for the second years.   
  
"I'm just thinking that next year we'll have six of them with us and the year after already eight! That'll be fun," Sirius remarked.  
  
"By then we can let Vega and Polaris loose and shop on their own," Remus replied.  
  
"Are you crazy? They seem to have become close friends with Fred and George Weasley, who are just a year above them. And these two are worse than we were, Remus!"  
  
Remus laughed. They had received a number of owls from Hogwarts, telling them about their oldest children's antics. Their children seemed to have a lot of fun at school. The only sore spot was that they had to attend classes with Snape, who let them feel his dislike of Gryffindors in general and their fathers in particular. They had tried to talk to him and had almost begged him not to get at their children in revenge for their behaviour. Their pleas had fallen on deaf ears so far.   
  
But if Sirius and Remus had to be afraid of how Snape would treat their children, James was scared. Snape had hated him most out of the Marauders. Harry would be attacked right from his first lesson and James still had no idea how he could prepare his son for that. He knew he would have to talk with Harry about it. Sirius and Remus had done this with Vega and Polaris. It had helped them little, but at least they understood Snape's motivation and didn't take it personal.   
  
A few days before the children would leave for school James took the three of them to a corner in the family room and talked to them.  
  
"Now, there is something I have to explain to you about one of the teachers you will be meeting at Hogwarts. He was one of our classmates, a Slytherin. He will be your Potions teacher and I'm sure Vega and Polaris have told you a few things about him."  
  
"Oh yes, and they've warned us about him. Snape is his name, isn't it?" said Harry.  
  
"Yes. Now we really weren't friends back at school. On the contrary, we were rather everything else than friends. We played him some nasty pranks, but he gave as good as he got. The problem is that he will probably take it out on you children. The best advice I can give you is to just try to be as inconspicuous as you can be. Don't goof in his classes, stay calm. He will not be very nice to you. Remember that he will do that to pay us back, you will just be the unlucky recipients. But if he goes too far, write to us and we will talk with the headmaster. Vega and Polaris have kept a pretty low profile, but he's docked them points and he's given them undeserved detentions. You will have to expect the same. You are not obliged to accept such detentions. I would suggest to ask Dumbledore for a talk if he gets overboard. Don't talk back though, he'll just punish your house in an unreasonable way."  
  
"Eurgh!" said Alya.  
  
"I know, sweetie, but you will have to live with the teachers you get. You have no choice but to accept them. No doubt he IS sensational in his subject, but he is not the best of teachers. Try to take as much out of the classes as you can, knowing how to brew potions is a very refined branch of magic. And a useful one. How often have you watched one of us brewing something?"  
  
"I know, dad, and that makes it so hard. Whatever we will do he'll probably try to provoke us."  
  
"Yes, he will. But then please write to us and tell us about it. You're not alone, kids. We can do something. All it takes is collecting such incidents. Write to us when things happen and we'll confront him with it. I don't want to ruin his teaching career, but I want you to have a fair chance at learning the subject he teaches properly and fairly."  
  
The morning of the first of September dawned and five very excited children got up early enough to make their elders groan. The school trunks had all been packed and they would floo to Diagon Alley to make the trip to King's Cross station a lot shorter. Sirius had already organised taxis from Charing Cross Road to the station. They reached their destination with a bit more than half an hour to spare. Just as they got to the barrier they met up with Molly Weasley who brought her brood to the station. Vega and Polaris immediately hooked up with Fred and George. They all went through the barrier after Percy. Harry, Alya and Antares weren't afraid, as they had been allowed to go with the family the year before.  
  
Behind the barrier Molly looked at the Black and Potter children. Then she looked at James, Lily, Remus and Sirius, who accompanied them.   
  
"Hello. I'm Molly Weasley... it seems that some of your children have befriended two of mine..."  
  
"That would be our oldest, Vega and Polaris Black. I'm Sirius Black, that's my husband Remus. Lily and James Potter. Their son Harry, our son Antares and our daughter Alya are first years."  
  
"Oh, three of them at once? Ron here is also starting..."  
  
"Hi Ron! You're bound to have a lot of fun at Hogwarts! Your oldest brothers came to school when we were in our fifth and then seventh years..." said Sirius.  
  
"Oh, so you know them?"  
  
"They were great little lads. I hear, Bill went on to be headboy?"  
  
"Yeah. I've got a lot to live up to," Ron said a bit sullenly.  
  
"You'll do fine on your own, Ron! Go along, get seated, before the whole train is full!" Molly sent her son into the next best compartment after the Black and Potter children.  
  
They had found a compartment and sat down, all five of them. Polaris opened the window to wave at his fathers and the Potters. Sirius, Remus, Lily and James waved back and James reminded them:  
  
"Say hello to Sir Nick and don't forget to have fun!"  
  
"We will and we won't, dad!" Harry cried and then the train started to move and left the station.  
  
Only about five minutes later the door to their compartment was pulled open and Ron stood there.   
  
"Can I sit here? Everywhere else is pretty full..."  
  
"No problem, come in!" said Antares.  
  
"Thanks," said Ron and pulled his trunk inside.   
  
The others helped him to push it out of the way and then he sat down next to Polaris, who sat next to Vega.  
  
"I'm Ron Weasley. Who are you all?"  
  
"I'm Polaris Black. This is my sister Vega. We'll start second year. These are Alya and Antares, our siblings and Harry Potter. They start first year. Are you a first year, too?"  
  
"Yeah, I am."  
  
"You're George and Fred's younger brother, aren't you?" asked Vega.  
  
"That's me. There's one more older brother of mine at school. Percy, he's a fifth year Gryffindor and he's a prefect..."  
  
"We know him!" chorused Polaris and Vega with a groan.   
  
Ron grinned.  
  
"He's a pest, isn't he?"  
  
"Absolutely!" confirmed Vega.  
  
"So what house do you think you'll be?" asked Polaris.  
  
"All my family's been in Gryffindor. I think, it would look a bit strange if I weren't. But I won't mind any of the houses, just as long as it isn't Slytherin."  
  
"Same here!" said Harry with conviction.  
  
"So how do we get sorted? Fred and George tried to tell me that we have to wrestle a troll!" Ron asked the two second years.  
  
All five in the compartment roared with laughter.  
  
"Oh dear! Your parents didn't tell you? There's a hat, it can read your mind and will find out your strengths and weaknesses and put you in the house you'll fit best. And it only tells the rest of the Great Hall the result, not what it says to you, so no worries, Ron!" Vega said.   
  
She was a prankster, but she had Remus' soft heart and didn't like to see her friends embarrassed.   
  
"Oh! That's a relief!" said Ron.   
  
The door opened and the witch with the food cart passed them:  
  
"Any of you dears want something from the cart?"  
  
"Oh yes!"  
  
They all jumped up, all except Ron, and got some stuff. Alya looked back at Ron and asked:  
  
"Nothing for you?"  
  
Ron shook his head and pointed at a package he had just fished out of his bag.  
  
"Got this here. Mum's always making sandwiches for us."  
  
Alya still picked up a few chocolate frogs and Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans to share them with Ron. He didn't want anything at first, but she said:  
  
"Oh, come on, Ron, we love to share. We're so many children at home we know how to share with others, you know."  
  
"That at least is something we have in common."  
  
Only moments later the door swung open again, this time to reveal a boy with a pale face, steely grey eyes and white blond hair. Two large boys were standing close behind him. He looked around the compartment and then said:  
  
"I'm supposed to find cousins in here... you three definitely look like Blacks. Is that you?"  
  
"Depends. Who are you?" asked Vega.  
  
"Draco Malfoy. My mother is Sirius Black's cousin."  
  
Ron snickered when he heard the name. Draco swivelled around immediately and said:  
  
"You find my name funny? Well, I don't need to ask yours, you're a Weasley. My grandmother said the Weasleys all have red hair and more children than they can afford!"  
  
"Now that's quite enough, Draco, either you leave us alone or you stop fighting. We know quite a lot about your side of the family, and we're not too keen on knowing even more. You might consider leaving," said Polaris with all the grandeur he could muster.   
  
Ron looked at his new friend with quite a bit of admiration.   
  
"Polaris is quite right, Malfoy, we don't need your kind here," said Harry.  
  
"What do you know about my kind? There are better pure-blooded families and less good ones. You might not know, your mother is a mudblood after all!"  
  
He said that and in seconds flat all six children seated in the compartment were on their feet pointing their wands at him.   
  
"You go right now or we'll hex you out of this door!" Vega cried.   
  
"You'd best get out of here, Malfoy. We don't take kindly to people who talk like Death Eaters!" Harry commented.  
  
"Just to remind you of the little detail that our parents eliminated Voldemort and quite a few of his followers, including your father and mother, Malfoy. Now get out!" said Polaris.  
  
"We'll meet again!" With that Malfoy shoved the door closed and left, his two 'bodyguards' behind him.  
  
"You said You-Know-Who's name!" gasped Ron.  
  
"Yes, we do. And you should, too. Dad and papa say that it's stupid to say You-Know-Who. They said that fearing the name only increases the fear of the thing itself," Alya explained.  
  
"Well, I AM afraid! He's killed so many people. - Wait a moment, did you say dad and papa? Why do you give your father two names?" Ron asked, confused.  
  
"They're two people. We have two fathers, you know, somehow we have to give them different names," Vega explained.  
  
"Oh. I wasn't aware that that's possible," said Ron, blushing.  
  
"Only in rare cases. Our papa is a werewolf and he and my dad are bond-mates. That changed their bodies and they are now both genders in one. Normally they look like ordinary men, but they can make and conceive babies," Polaris explained calmly.  
  
Ron blanched.  
  
"A werewolf? Your father's a... a... werewolf?"   
  
"Yes, he is."  
  
"But they're murderous beasts, werewolves!" Ron cried out.  
  
"That's rubbish. Don't know who told you that, but we know our papa and believe me, he's everything but a monster. Besides he's taking a potion every month before he has to transform and that makes him a harmless wolf. We love to cuddle with him and play with him then. Just have to stay away from those nasty teeth. But he takes great care then. He's the sweetest man you can imagine," Vega said.  
  
Ron was almost shaking now. He swallowed and it took him a good moment to recover from that shock.  
  
"You will know if you lived that long..." he said a bit stupidly.   
  
"Look, just forget about it, okay? Papa has been one of the best students at Hogwarts and apart from his best friends no one found out that he was a werewolf when he went there. It would have been pretty hard to hide if he really were a monster, don't you think?" asked Vega a bit impatiently.  
  
"And if you want to argue that he's a Dark Creature then all we can say is that he and dad have killed Voldemort. If that still makes him a monster then you might look elsewhere for friends but not among us. Just try to be a bit open minded, okay?" said Alya.  
  
"Okay, don't worry... I mean, he's not exactly near us now anyway..."  
  
The five children didn't say that their father could very well get much closer to them in a year or so than Ron thought. The rest of the ride went by quite peacefully and there was only one interruption when a boy came in and asked whether they had seen his pet toad. And half an hour later a girl came in and asked:  
  
"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville has lost his..."  
  
"No, we haven't. That Neville has already been here and we told him, too," said Antares, who sat closest to the door.  
  
"Oh, alright. We'll be there soon, you've not yet got your robes on! You should hurry, you know!"  
  
"Don't worry, we're second years, we know when to get dressed into the school robes," Vega said, slightly irritated.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry then..." the girl left and Ron said:  
  
"Well, she sounds bossy enough. I hope, that whatever house she'll be sorted to I won't be in..."  
  
They all pulled their school robes over their usual clothes, then they started to wait for the arrival at Hogsmeade station. Once there Hagrid called them over and assembled them to take them across the lake. Everything went quite fast from then on and they didn't have much time to think about anything. Vega and Polaris waved at them and followed the other students to the horseless carriages.   
  
When they finally marched into the Great Hall behind Minerva they were all a bit scared, even Antares, who was usually the most level-headed one of them. They were ordered to stand in a line in front of the teacher's table and then the hat started to sing its song.   
  
"You were right! And I was so scared! Bloody Fred and George! They're always using their pranks on me," Ron whispered into Harry's ear.   
  
"Poor you."  
  
The first few students were sorted and then it was Alya's turn:  
  
"Black-Lupin Alya!" Minerva called and looked up to see a cute girl with brown hair and blue eyes walk calmly to the stool with the hat.  
  
She had barely put it on her head, when it said in her mind:  
  
"Oooh, look here! How nice to meet you, little one, you're another one of those new Blacks! I know I can sort you anywhere but Slytherin, so you best go into GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
Alya grinned, pulled the had away and joined her older siblings at the Gryffindor table. Then she turned to see where her brother would land himself.   
  
"Black-Lupin Antares!" Minerva called.  
  
Antares followed his sister's path. He looked like a carbon copy of Sirius, but when the hat came down around his ears the little voice said:  
  
"Another one? Oh dear! Well, there's nothing for it, you're probably going to... oh, wait! Brilliant mind, want to study more than anything else? You love books and more books? Would you mind when I put you into RAVENCLAW!"  
  
No, Antares didn't mind. He'd miss all his siblings, but he would be happy to be in the house of the intellectuals. Minerva threw a look at Filius, who looked happy about the newest addition to his house. She turned back to her list.   
  
After a while she called:  
  
"Granger, Hermione!"  
  
The bushy haired girl from the train almost ran to the stool and eagerly put the hat on her head. It took only seconds before it sent her to Gryffindor. Ron and Harry groaned a bit, but then they concentrated on other things. Hermione went to the Gryffindor table and sat down next to Alya.  
  
"Hello! I saw you on the train, didn't I?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Yeah, you were looking for Neville's toad, weren't you?"  
  
"He found it eventually. I thought, you were a second year?"  
  
"My older brother and sister. They're over there, Vega and Polaris. My name's Alya."  
  
"You've all got named after stars?"  
  
"Just the four of us. We have two younger brothers and their names are Ryan and Quentin. Our dad's name is Sirius. He said, everyone in the family of the Blacks has always been named after stars. Just very few exceptions."  
  
"Wow, you're six children?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Are you and your brother who went to Ravenclaw twins?" Hermione asked, "Only you look very different..."  
  
"No. I'm two months older than Antares."  
  
"That's impossible, isn't it? I mean, could your mother give birth twice in two months?"  
  
Alya laughed.  
  
"No one could do that. There are other reasons. We don't have a mother per se, you see, we have two fathers."  
  
Now Hermione looked most perplexed.   
  
"How does that work? I've never heard anything like that."  
  
Alya started to explain, but then Minerva called Harry to the hat.  
  
"Just a moment, Hermione, let's see where Harry goes to!"  
  
Harry joined them at the Gryffindor table soon enough and beamed, but he said:  
  
"Bugger, that Antares went to Ravenclaw! It would have been great to be together with him!"  
  
"Yeah, well... he'll be happy to dig himself into books all the time, Harry. We'll see him often enough."  
  
"True enough. Still. I wanted him to be in my dorm!"  
  
"Hermione, this prat here is Harry Potter! We've grown up together because his parents and mine are best friends and we are all living in a castle. With two other families. And there we're about fifteen children all in all..."  
  
"With more to come, as my mum's waiting to give birth again. That'll be five of us and with that they'll soon have caught up with your dads, Alya!"  
  
Alya laughed.  
  
"And then papa will want another one to escape his transformations for a while... could do with another sister though, all those boys in the family!" she grinned.  
  
Hermione looked from one to the other. Next to her, another girl had sat down and looked equally perplexed. She asked Alya:  
  
"Your dads - plural? How does that work?"  
  
"And what transformations?" asked Lavender Brown, the fourth new Gryffindor girl from Alya's other side.  
  
Alya and Harry sighed a little and plunged into explanations. Hermione and the other girl, a pretty Indian girl with endlessly long black braids named Parvati Patil were stunned.  
  
"Wow. Never heard of anything like that."  
  
"But then it explains why you two can be two months apart," Hermione said, laughing.  
  
"Yes. It's a bit of a funny feeling to explain that. I hate to give my papa's condition away, because so many people put him down for it, but of course it's also very well known that he's a werewolf since he and daddy killed that Voldemort person."  
  
"Do you know which of your fathers has actually given birth to you?" Parvati asked, curious.  
  
"Yes. Sirius Black."  
  
"So your fathers are actually married?" Hermione wanted to know.  
  
"Yes, they are."  
  
After that the conversation turned to their family backgrounds. In the meantime, another boy had joined the first year Gryffindors, Dean Thomas. Dean was a black boy who told the others that his family was non-magical and Hermione followed suit in saying:  
  
"None of my family has ever been magical, I'm the very first one. It was ever so exciting when I got my letter!"  
  
"My parents thought it was a joke! There were seven letters before they actually started to believe in it," Dean said.  
  
"My parents are half-half. Me mum's a witch, but me dad's a Muggle. She only told him after they got married. Bit of a shock for him, but he doesn't mind her doing things a bit quicker than other women. They're pretty cool, both of 'em," said Seamus Finnegan, another boy in their year.   
  
"Weasley, Ron!" Minerva called.  
  
Ron ran to the stool, put the hat on and hoped it would be over soon. He had to wait until almost to the end, which he hated, but then the hat was barely on his head when it sent him to Gryffindor. He came over and found that Harry had kept a spot free for him.  
  
The three children soon felt at home at Hogwarts and were very happy there. In no time they had forged friendships with most of their classmates in Gryffindor. There were four girls in Alya's dorm, of which Parvati and Lavender got close and Hermione and Alya soon became close friends, too. Together with Harry and Ron they became a very close-knit group of friends. 


	18. Epilogue The Most Special Couple

Title: Baby Boom! 18/18  
  
Author: Mariann  
  
Rating: R  
  
Pairing: Sirius/Remus   
  
Category: Between Fluff, Fun and Fighting  
  
Summary: Sirius and Remus grow up, find love, start a family and fight the Dark Lord  
  
Disclaimer: Belongs to JKR - no money's made from my poor attempts at writing  
  
A/N: AU - The Willow Incident does not happen in this story. Peter is loyal and a spy for Dumbledore. Remus and Sirius are destined to fight Voldemort - will they succeed? A fair amount of children are born in this story - to spite the Death Eaters of course!  
  
This is now totally silly, but I needed some kine of a closure to the story, so I thought of a short review on some bits of their lives :)   
  
**18. Epilogue - "Most Special Couple"**  
  
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this month's emission of 'Most Special Couple of the Month', I'm your host, Belinda Carlisle."  
  
Belinda walked into her set at the British Tele-Orb studio and the introductory tune stopped. She went on:  
  
"It's January 2127 and this month's Most Special Couple is a very special couple indeed. We don't very often have a gay couple here, but you will find their names in the history books and in scientific books and why that is so we will find out in the course of the next two and a half hours. As is the custom on BTO's Most Special Couple program we will let them introduce themselves in a few words."  
  
Sirius and Remus then walked in and received a welcoming applause from the audience in the studio. They sat down on a nice sofa next to Belinda's armchair. On a coffee table in front of them were their favourite drinks and it was Sirius who started:  
  
"My name is Sirius Orion Black, I'm 167 years old and I have been married for 150 years."  
  
Remus then went on:  
  
"My name is Remus John Black-Lupin, I'm 167 years old and I have been married for 150 years."  
  
"150 years of marriage. That is truly impressive, even in the wizarding world with an average life expectancy of 180 years! It is, of course, one of the many reasons for us to invite you into our program. So, let us talk about that and the reasons why we find your names in so many history and science books!"  
  
Belinda took a seat on her armchair and shuffled her little stack of parchment slips.   
  
"Let's start with your wedding. You got married one hundred and fifty years ago, in the middle of the crisis around one Dark Lord Voldemort. You were seventeen years old at the time. Why so early?"  
  
Sirius and Remus looked at each other. It was Sirius who took the word.  
  
"We never had an actual wedding ceremony. Our anniversary is the day we finished the mating rituals between my werewolf partner and I. We are the first life-bonded werewolf/human couple for over four hundred years and, to my knowledge, the only one in the past one hundred and fifty years."  
  
"According to the Ministry standard Werewolf Code of Conduct the mating rituals represent a marriage contract and are registered automatically," Remus added.  
  
"That may come as a surprise for many of our spectators! When I was doing my usual research for this program I of course started to brush up on my knowledge about werewolves a bit and found literally hundreds of sources, many of them say that werewolves always mate for life. But there was a more recent book written by yourself, Remus, and since you are a werewolf, I suppose you put down your experiences more correctly. Why is there so much folklore about werewolves to be found?"  
  
"It's fairly hard to get the more folkloristic books off the market. It seems that people still rather believe the gruesome nonsense than the real thing, which of course sounds much less dramatic and even less dangerous. But my book has been sold very well for the past more than a hundred years. I wrote it, because I thought it was time that a werewolf speaks up with facts. Out of those hundreds of sources you just talked about only about four or five have ever been written by werewolves themselves."  
  
"Obviously you being a werewolf is a big part in tonight's program. Especially since you are a very special representative of your kind. You were the first werewolf ever allowed a full education at Hogwarts. You were the first werewolf in more than four hundred years to mate and you and your mate were the two people who vanquished the Dark Lord Voldemort in 1981. You are also rumoured to be one of the most powerful wizards not only in Britain, but in the world and yet you have never felt the need to overpower anyone but Lord Voldemort. Tell us, why he is so special, Sirius!"  
  
Sirius looked at his mate. Both of them were dressed in fitting dress robes, Sirius' were a bright orange, Remus' were burnt orange and they both still had long hair, now totally white, but still shiny. Sirius wore his in a long and intricate braid, Remus' was open and went just below his shoulders. Sirius took his husband's hand and said:  
  
"He is special, because he's the most loving and tender person in the world. He is calm, rational, intelligent and powerful. He is passionate and extremely protective of his loved ones. He's one hell of a lover and one hell of a good father. And, as you mentioned, he's devilishly powerful when he needs to be."  
  
Remus smiled. Belinda looked at him and asked:  
  
"The general conception of werewolves has changed a bit in the last few decades. I know you had a bit to do with that, but to this day most people would rather call a werewolf a raging monster. Yet you sit here and are the way your husband describes you, calm. Why do so many people mistake werewolves, Remus?"  
  
"Basically because they usually don't know a werewolf personally. There are so many books that say how to recognise a werewolf, but 99 out of 100 people will not find out that a person they meet actually is a werewolf. They might, if they observed the werewolf over a period of time, usually it takes at least three or four months. But truth is that werewolves are just people. They suffer from the monthly transformations and it's that one night a month that gives them the bad name. In the past seventy years there has not been one new werewolf created in Britain. The main reason for that is the availability of the Wolfsbane potion and the changed laws that give werewolves full civil rights and free access to this potion. The success of these two elements is amazing. There are now no more than a dozen werewolves left in Britain and those are, like me, all older than or just below a hundred years."  
  
"A truly remarkable development."  
  
"I think so, too," said Remus, "and I have to specially thank those people who researched the Wolfsbane potion and have improved it over the years. The latest version was put on the market sixty-two years ago and since then I have not had one painful transformation anymore."  
  
"How does the potion work for you?"  
  
"It subdues the pain and then it keeps the wolf tame. I'm still transforming on the nights of the full moon, but since I was twenty-five I have not felt the rage and the blood-lust of the werewolf anymore. And I have never suffered from nightmares anymore, either. Because contrary to old popular belief werewolves do NOT enjoy being werewolves. There is, first of all, the transformation itself, which leaves us terribly weak on the two or three days around the full moon. Only one night we actually transform, but without the potion that is really nothing anyone would want to experience. So without the potion the fear of every werewolf is to actually kill or turn someone with a bite. It causes recurring nightmares of doing precisely that, most often to the werewolf's nearest and dearest. During my school days at Hogwarts I was haunted by the fear of harming my three best friends and dorm-mates."  
  
"How do you spend such a full moon night?"  
  
"Usually, after taking the potion on the morning before the full moon, I just go to my bedroom after dinner and wait for the transformation to take place there. Once I have transformed I spend the evening with my family and the night in my bed. Sometimes I still like to run in the forest with my mate, who is an Animagus and can transform into a cute black dog. We still like to have some fun."  
  
"Both of you look very healthy and extremely well, even at almost a hundred and seventy years old! What's your recipe for keeping up a good shape and health?"  
  
Sirius grinned.  
  
"Lots of love, good food, fun, activity... we like to move a lot, so we go out walking once every day for an hour or so. We still spend quite a lot of time reading. We're still doing some spell crafting sometimes. And then we have a large family."  
  
Belinda smiled, quickly shifted her slips and turned to Sirius again.  
  
"That's one of the next topics of conversation. How about you tell us about your mating first, then your family?"  
  
"Remus and I fell in love when we were fifteen. It was the summer before our sixth year and we had both just found out that we preferred boys to girls and, well, each other. It's such a long time ago, but I still remember it like it was yesterday. He had the cutest nose and the way his hair always fell into his eyes made him look so sweet. Don't know what he saw in me, because I saw myself as a long gangly boy and not much more. Anyway, we did get together and once we were back at Hogwarts it didn't take long for it to become known around the school that we were a couple. During the Christmas break, which we spent with Remus' parents we were called to see the headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, and he told us about the mating rituals which we could follow. He had to ask us whether we were both still virgins as that was the main condition for these rituals to have any effect. Upon telling him that we had not consummated our relationship fully he informed us about the life-bonding and that going through the rituals we would not only be bonded for the rest of our lives, but that this would boost our magical power by a factor of about ten."  
  
Gasps in the audience were audible and even Belinda looked up, amazed.  
  
"Wow. That's a lot of extra power. How did the mating rituals work?"  
  
"Any werewolf can mate with any other partner, male, female, human or werewolf, as long as both partners are still virgins and want to commit themselves to a life long partnership. The rituals are all in a way sexual but won't work if there's no love. They are quite simple actually. In our case Dumbledore offered us a secluded room at Hogwarts for the week-long rituals. The books talking about werewolves mating for life usually mention that the first sexual partner a werewolf has is their life-bonded partner. It's not quite as quick as that. The two to be bonded partners have to spend seven full days and nights together, never once losing direct skin contact and keeping up a steady series of sexual intercourse during that week. That is, basically make love in intervals no longer than twelve hours apart and never stop touching. I think, we hardly had a stitch of clothing on for that week. We used something to tie our wrists together when we slept to make sure we didn't lose the contact in our sleep. It was an incredibly intensive week and definitely the basis for our relationship since then."  
  
"That sounds rather impressive! And I think you both radiate of love and happiness..."  
  
"Most people notice the bond between us. We are both very happy and have been throughout all those years since we have come together. Looking back on a century and a half of living together it feels like only minutes!" Remus said.  
  
"Do you ever fight? Any pet peeves about each other or something?"  
  
"Of course we do! We're like any other couple in this. He always leaves the tooth paste open, even when I've been to the bathroom first! I don't know how often we fought about that. Bathroom things are definitely my pet peeves," Remus said immediately.  
  
"He never puts books back to the shelves! They stack up on his night table and if I don't put them back they just collect dust where they are left around our bed! That's another one..." Sirius followed suit.  
  
"He used to let a lot more through with our children. But that might have been because he was brought up by a set of extremely abusive parents," Remus adds.  
  
"Remus always skived off horse cleaning duties. We've kept riding horses after we moved into our castle and we cared for them ourselves. Something he absolutely hates, so he tried to get out of it whenever he could. That was okay once we had children old enough to do it, but once they were able to get around the horses they usually went off to Hogwarts, so when school was in session Remus still had to do it himself and still tried to get out of it for the most part."  
  
"I was afraid of them!" Remus protested.  
  
There was laughter in the audience now. This did sound like a very normal couple.  
  
"So when was your last fight?" Belinda asked.  
  
"Err... I don't know. When did we fight the last time, love?" Remus asked his mate.  
  
"Must have been a while ago," Sirius just said, "and I'll be damned if I remember the reason."  
  
"Neither do I..."  
  
"You still seem to get along very well. When was the last time you travelled?"  
  
"Actually we've just come back from our anniversary get-away. We've been to Hawaii for two weeks," Sirius said with a broad grin.  
  
"That sounds lovely. Did you travel a lot?"  
  
"Not overly much. We couldn't take all of our children along mostly, so when we travelled it was usually the two of us and sometimes we had the last one or two of our children with us," Remus said.  
  
"When was the last time you had sex?"  
  
"We get a bit slower these days, but... this morning," Sirius replied without hesitating.  
  
"Really? Wow..."  
  
Sirius grinned again and added: "We're trying to never get sick of it. We've had so many good years together, spent so much quality time together and we want to keep that up."  
  
"So you're having a very active sexual relationship?"  
  
"You could say that," Remus replied, blushing a little, "To this day we prefer to be in close proximity and possibly touch. Skin or through fabric doesn't make much of a difference, but to feel each other is a necessity for both of us."  
  
"That's amazing. What was the biggest change in your lives apart from the mating?"  
  
"The consequences of the mating. First the power surge that came with the mating and one more later on after our first child each."  
  
"How did that manifest itself?"  
  
"Wandless magic for one, VERY powerful spell-casting both wandless and through our wands. For instance, if Sirius and I cast a Reducto spell together we're able to reduce a small cabin to rubble," Remus said.   
  
"Holy priestess of Avalon! Did you ever do this?"  
  
"No. Back then we mostly practiced on huge slabs of granite," Sirius said calmly.  
  
"Dear me! That is indeed powerful! You said first, so what was the next biggest change?"  
  
"That was another consequence of our mating. As we are both male the mating changed our bodies slightly. In the course of about a year after the mating all the internal parts of male werewolves and their mates, if they are male, receive additional reproduction organs. We are both fully functioning hermaphrodites. To the outside only our nipples have visibly changed, they are looking like women's nipples, but our chests are still like any other man's. Inside we have ovaries, tubes and an uterus. We are able to sire, conceive, carry and give birth to children. In such a case our body changes more to the female, as in the course of the pregnancy our penis vanishes to make place for the vagina and our breasts develop to allow nursing. Roughly two months after the birth the vagina vanishes again and the penis is back. Once we stop nursing it takes about another six to eight weeks until the breasts vanish to bring back the male outer appearance," Sirius explained.  
  
"Wow again. That mating bond certainly has tremendous consequences. What would change if the partners were a normal male/female couple?"  
  
"We're not sure, but I think that all mated werewolf couples become hermaphrodites. In a female/female couple it would probably manifest itself in gaining testicles and a prostate and a penis at certain intervals, similar to the female menstruation. In a male/female couple the male would develop the same way as we did, the female the same way as two females. That's only a hypothesis though and we will probably never know as there are no young werewolves around anymore and our sources only talked of regular heterosexual couples but didn't ever mention the hermaphrodite bit. In fact I never found out how Albus Dumbledore knew about that consequence. I doubt that there are very many virginal werewolves around these days. And of course we're not going to make new ones just to find out about that," Remus said.  
  
"I see. So you can be regarded as one of a kind?"  
  
"Absolutely."  
  
"You did mention children already, so now let's move to your family. It has started off quite early, hasn't it?"  
  
Remus and Sirius both smiled, thinking fondly of their numerous offspring. They silently shared a few memories and then Sirius spoke up:  
  
"Yes, it did. As I said, the physical change takes about a year. We were in our seventh year at Hogwarts when one day Remus didn't transform on a full moon night. I was with him of course, because being an Animagus allowed me to be with him without danger. He was almost frantic and terrified, because the transformation didn't set in and when the moon finally set and he still hadn't transformed he was sure that he had mixed up his lunar calendar. But it had really been the full moon and a subsequent examination brought forth that he was pregnant. That was in March before our NEWTS. The school nurse, Poppy Pomfrey, checked Remus up and on Dumbledore's recommendation, she checked me up as well. I was as pregnant as my mate was."  
  
There was laughter in the audience again. Belinda wanted to know:  
  
"You were both pregnant at the same time?"  
  
"Yes, and we must have picked up at about the same time. My first daughter was born on December the fifth and Remus' first son was born a week later. We both nursed them for a good year. That was one of the most intensive years in my life! Vega and Polaris are now 148 years old."  
  
"Now shock us all with the size of your family!" Belinda told them.  
  
Remus swallowed, took a deep breath and said:  
  
"Since a pregnancy freed me from transforming we decided on a large family, so that every third or fourth year I could enjoy a longer period of transformation free time. Sirius gave birth four times, he has three daughters and a son. I gave birth seventeen times, I have eight daughters and nine sons. The oldest, as Sirius just said, are 148, the youngest are seventy. The last child I had when I was ninety-seven. To my knowledge I'm the oldest wizard/witch to ever give birth in the British wizarding world."  
  
"Our twenty-one children have given us a sum of sixty-five grandchildren, we have one hundred and thirty two great-grandchildren and seventy-one great-great grandchildren at the latest count. And at this moment we are waiting for the first great-great-great grandchild," Sirius said calmly.  
  
One could have heard a needle drop in the studio.  
  
"That certainly makes you one of the largest families anyone could imagine!" Belinda, who was only twenty-eight, whispered.  
  
"Yes, I think it does. Even from our youngest daughter we have three great-grandchildren."  
  
"Do you ever get them all to a family meeting at the same time?"  
  
"That's as good as impossible. Many of them have moved all over the country, to the continent and even overseas. But we have a traditional week-long family get together during the month of July when everyone who can drops by for at least a day or two. We do get to see most of them regularly. Which is especially nice in the case of Vega and Polaris, our oldest. They are probably around the most often. Also, we moved to our home when we were just over twenty, together with six of our best friends, who had a few children among them as well. I bought this castle we're still inhabiting close to Scarborough back when we had our first four children and our best friend and his wife had their first. Among the six of them they managed a further ten children. We were lucky that the castle has about a hundred bedrooms. They were renovated and decorated for the children one by one when we needed them and now we have all of them made up and ready for everyone who ever drops in."  
  
"I've of course known about the size of your family, after all I've done my homework, but it still sounds amazing. How do you maintain contact? I don't even want to imagine the size of your correspondence with just the immediate family alone!"  
  
"It's considerable," said Remus, "but Dictaquills are quite helpful there. We do have a fairly big owlery though and own about thirty post owls."  
  
"Are your friends still living with you?"  
  
"James and Lily Potter do. Peter and Sabina Pettigrew went to live a bit closer to the Diagon Alley where they own a large apothecary. Peter died twenty-two years ago. Hope Foster died sixteen years ago and her partner Dari Sanchez died eight years ago. They had lived with us until then."  
  
"Are any of your children still living permanently at this castle?"  
  
"Yes, several of them even. It's still filled to the brim with life. Which keeps us alive, too!"  
  
"Since you are a descendant of a very wealthy family money never seems to have been an issue with you?"  
  
"No. Once we had the castle life became pretty cheap, to be quite honest. We have a small colony of house-elves, all of them free elves I'd like to mention, and they keep us very well fed and housed. Remus' parents didn't leave him very much, but he made a name as an author and his books sell quite well. He's also a specialist on personalised wards on houses and areas, he's done most of the last more than hundred years worth of the Hogwarts wards, for example. At times he was also a teacher, which earned him a bit of money, too. I did consider a professional career after the defeat of Moldy Voldie, but then we had all these small children and I much preferred to spend my time with my family."  
  
"You have just mentioned the reason why you turn up in so many history books. When I got my letter of acceptance to Hogwarts I was totally shocked, I'm a Muggle-born witch, but I decided to read as much about the wizarding world as I could and bought a few additional books at Flourish & Blotts, among them Hogwarts, a History..."  
  
"...does that remind you of one Headmistress Hermione Granger-Potter, Sirius?" Remus asked.  
  
"It certainly does. And it reminds me of one Remus J. Lupin, who was about the only one in a whole generation to read that book - six times at least!" Sirius teased.  
  
"Eighteen by now," Remus shot back.  
  
Belinda laughed and continued:  
  
"Well, getting to the end of the book that was probably the first time I read not only of the Dark Lord, but also of the two of you. It mentioned that you vanquished him and how. The wizarding world thanks you for a period of continuous peace of almost 150 years. That is the longest period without a war in our history!"  
  
"I think, the rise of Voldemort was so terrifying that people started to cherish freedom and peace more and more and that's why we all worked on holding on to that peace. Even many of those people who sympathised with the Death Eaters back then had learned that such a regime only meant death and destruction. There are lots of old pureblood families who are now completely extinct because of this last war. You young people are so used to growing up in peaceful times you are probably not even able to understand how we felt back then. You wouldn't talk to strange witches or wizards. You didn't know who supported Voldemort and who didn't. You didn't know if a wizard or witch was a Death Eater, Voldemort's closest followers and enslaved to him through a mark they wore. If you were in their eye as a possible recruit you had to practically vanish from the face of the earth to hide, because saying no to an attempt of recruitment from Voldemort meant death or at least torture. My own brother became a Death Eater, but tried to get out of it and was killed for it. We had to be covered with extreme wards and a Fidelius charm. We were all members of a counter organisation to fight against the Death Eaters and aid the Ministry Aurors. Back then we had a group of at least three hundred Aurors, nowadays there are a few dozens only. Back then Defence against the Dark Arts was the most important subject at Hogwarts and we all learned how to duel and fight hard. We had to learn self-defence to survive a possible encounter with Death Eaters. Once we had left school Remus specialised on wards and was off warding many people's houses for them. Lily Potter and myself studied everything we found in every library available to craft new wards and aggressive spells. We developed the spell that finally brought Voldemort down."  
  
"That sounds scary! You are right, I'm unable to understand this time! You killed the man, didn't you?"  
  
"Yes, we did. We had to. I am very glad to say that I have never killed a human on any other occasion, but we really had to kill Lord Voldemort. We had developed a spell that conjured a lot of small, but extremely sharp knives. When Sirius and I cast this spell together we can conjure a line of several hundred such knives and direct them in waves so that a victim won't stand a chance of getting out of their way to the left or the right. We had to cast an anti-apparition ward and then we were able to throw these knives at Voldemort. Unfortunately just as he fell, one of his Death Eaters, probably the most fanatical one he had, threw himself into the hailstorm of knives and died, too," Remus said.  
  
"But we don't regret using this spell. We didn't know how far on the way to become immortal he really was already and we were not about taking chances of him getting away. The spell practically shredded his body to pieces, one of the most terrifying views I've ever seen! You could just about recognise his face, but everything else was torn. I'm glad I never had to cast such a spell again!" Sirius added.  
  
"I suppose that after that you weren't too keen on adventures anymore?"  
  
"Not exactly. After that we concentrated on the adventure that's bringing up a big family. I don't know if you have any children yet, but if you have, you probably know that it is uncharted territory when you become a parent for the first time."  
  
"I will learn one day, I hope. So far I don't have any children. You were very young parents."  
  
"Yes, if you have your first child at nineteen it's even more difficult. But we were lucky. Remus' parents were a great help and about a month after our children were born we were back at Hogwarts to do our research work. Apart from the war it was a really good time. Both of us and our children were safe at Hogwarts. I only read myself about through the Hogwarts library and through some of the headmaster's private stocks in that time. Parenting was done alongside reading all those books. Luckily it covered the babyhood of our oldest children. It was pretty easy, because we had them with us all the time. Either both of us or I did," Sirius said.  
  
"That sounds rather enjoyable."  
  
"It was. Not exactly relaxing though. I did quite a lot of nursing in those days. And that was probably the most enjoyable bit. Gave us both a wonderfully close relationship with the children."  
  
"And once the war was over?"  
  
Sirius grinned.  
  
"As I said, main focus on family life. I used to be a very jumpy kid, overactive and probably a total nuisance for most others. But the kids have calmed me down early on. Living together with others and with a bunch of caring house-elves we did go out maybe once or sometimes twice a week, lots of opportunities to dance and move. Being independently wealthy was very welcome and for that reason we did enjoy all of our life. Especially Remus deserved it for all he had to go through with his transformations and all."  
  
"He said that you gave birth to four children while he's had seventeen of that immense crowd of offspring you produced..."  
  
"Yes, and I really loved each of my pregnancies... well, I could have done without the morning sickness of course, but over all... I loved it."  
  
"Even giving birth? Isn't that a bit too painful to enjoy?"  
  
Sirius shook his head and smiled.  
  
"In that regard the second pregnancy was the most difficult one. I knew how it would feel and I was a bit afraid. But the third and fourth time it was pretty easy. No, I wouldn't say it was too painful to enjoy. And feeling a baby right after it's born is probably the most intense feeling you can ever experience!"  
  
"And how did you feel about it, Remus?"  
  
"Same. Actually it could have lasted for hours longer every time it would have still not been as bad as a werewolf transformation, believe me. There was only one downside and that was that I usually conceived shortly after a full moon and would give birth around a full moon again. On several occasions I had to transform on the day of giving birth. Mostly I was lucky and could hold the baby just long enough to spend one more transformation free full moon night. That usually gave me enough time to recover from the birth for the next transformation."  
  
"But each time you had another child..."  
  
"We did. And we love them. None of them has complained being around so far, which is a good sign, I think..." Remus said with a smile.  
  
"How do the two of you spend your days?"  
  
"Since we are not responsible for any children anymore we mostly sleep in until about nine, then we take our time for breakfast, which we eat together with whoever is around, mostly our friends James and Lily Potter. Then we either take a walk or go out for some errands, pick up a sandwich or so for lunch and see some of our friends after lunch. We do some baby-sitting if anyone needs us on some days. Sometimes we go for a game of darts or something to the nearest Muggle pub. We meet with the family for dinner and then usually spend the evening in their company. Lots of games, reading and we still enjoy our sexual relationship..." Sirius said.  
  
"I don't hear any mentioning of the Tele-Orb here..."  
  
"That would be because we don't watch any. There are some in several rooms, but not in the family rooms and not in our room, so we are pretty clueless about what's going on in this medium."  
  
"That would be rare, I guess..."  
  
"I don't even have an idea about that! We have so many things we enjoy, we wouldn't even have the time to watch. I'm watching my lover, that's better than anything anyway..." Sirius said and looked at Remus, who promptly blushed a bit.  
  
"Well then. Obviously we couldn't possibly leave all your statements unchallenged, and for that reason we have invited a few guests as witnesses. The first one is your best friend from your school time, Mr. James Potter!"  
  
James walked into the studio and was placed on an armchair right opposite of Remus and Sirius. He grinned at them.  
  
"Good evening, James! It's very nice to have you here. Of course you've heard everything your friends said. What's your verdict? True? Mostly true? Shaky? Mostly exaggerated? Mostly untrue? Untrue?"  
  
"You know, I do think they've got most of it fairly accurate. I do think, Remus didn't quite use the correct adjective when he called Sirius a 'cute' dog..."  
  
"So he's rather an ugly dog?"  
  
"No, not at all, just 'cute' doesn't really work on an animal the size of a small calf," James objected and grinned widely.   
  
"Do you think, you could show us that dog once, Sirius?" Belinda asked.  
  
Sirius sighed, stood up and a moment later Padfoot made his appearance. He received a great applause and trotted once around the coffee table, putting his front paws on Remus' knees and giving his face a quick lick. Remus pushed him off, but he laughed.  
  
"Down, Padfoot!" he said.  
  
Everyone around laughed at that. Belinda turned to James and said:  
  
"Yes, I can see what you mean. But beauty lies in the eye of the beholder, so I think, Remus is entitled to call that dog of his cute. Where does the Padfoot come from, Remus?"  
  
The three Marauders laughed and Remus explained:  
  
"James and Sirius found out that I'm a werewolf some way into our second year and almost immediately tagged me with the terrible nickname Moony. So when they mastered their transformations and became Animagi it only seemed natural to bestow them with nicknames of their own. Sirius is Padfoot as you've just heard. James turns into a stag and was named Prongs by our fourth friend, who himself transformed into a little rat and had thus been named Wormtail."  
  
"That sounds funny! Well then, let's call the next witness. This time it is one of the generation after you, I'm very pleased to welcome Alya Black-Miller, the third of your children!"  
  
Alya came into the studio and sat down on the second of three free armchairs. She smiled at her fathers and greeted them.  
  
"We've already learned quite a bit about your fathers, Alya, it would be lovely if you could give us some further insight into them. How about you telling us an anecdote or two about them?"  
  
"We've seen so much together... obviously one of the difficult things for everyone in our gigantic family is to remember the names of all in the family. When we get to the level of the great-grandchildren in particular, where there's really a huge number they are both a bit overstrained and believe me, they're not the only ones. But one day dad actually mixed up my sister Leonie with my other sister Veronica at least three times on the same day and that got them quite miffed. They're only a few months apart, because like me, Leonie is Sirius' daughter, Ronnie is our papa's and the two look almost like twins. Leonie then called dad purposely papa for about a week."  
  
"Did you ever walk into them being, well... occupied?"  
  
Remus, Sirius and Alya all laughed out loud.  
  
"ALL of us probably walked into that kind of activity at least once! We all liked to cuddle and their bedroom door was usually open. So, yes, I did."  
  
"How was their attitude to these things? Were they open or rather prudish? Judging from what they said so far I'd think Sirius to be more open..." Belinda asked.  
  
"Actually they were both able to talk about the facts of life without blushing or anything. They were always getting angry if people made those lame jokes about fathers getting into trouble when they had to give their sons 'the Talk'."  
  
"What did they tell you?"  
  
"You know, I don't even remember exactly, but I think they just waited for us to ask a question and then replied to that with a short answer. Then they elaborated when we asked on. That's what my husband and I did with our children later on. It was easier and didn't feel embarrassing. I thought our fathers' non-verbal statements were even more important. We all cuddled a lot and often hopped on their beds in the mornings. Don't know if I let out a great secret, but they sleep in their birthday suits, so that meant pretty much skin contact. They weren't touchy about that, so we learned early on to be natural about these things."  
  
"That sounds quite easy..."  
  
"It was. Have to really compliment them on that part of our upbringing," Alya said with a smile.  
  
"Were there things that peeved you?" Belinda wanted to know.  
  
"Certainly. But only back when we were children. They were actually quite strict parents."  
  
"How did they enforce their rules?"  
  
"Made us work around Mischief Palace a lot! Normally we only had to look after the horses, but if we were bad they made us muck the stable and things and of course it being during vacations there was no magic! Or they sat us in the library and made us read the most boring books. We couldn't not read them, because of course they would know the contents and question us about them! And they made us help the house-elves."  
  
"But that's all quite clever. Did you adults support each other on that?"  
  
"You bet! We had endless discussions and family meetings about disciplinary measures. If one lives together the way we do then you have to do almost everything on the basis of discussing. Mostly we agreed on the same things though, didn't we, James?"  
  
"I think so. We did have our difference of opinion when it came on what we thought was more important. Lily tended to side with Hope when it was about the kids and summer homework. If it went her way then she sat them down right in the beginning so it was out of the way. We thought they just came from school it would be good to give them a break. But we also tried to decide so it fitted the child concerned. Summers were especially fun. The size of the castle and the size of the kids' rooms allowed them to invite friends in and they did that quite often. As Sirius says... it's still brimming with life! Which keeps us going just for another while."  
  
"What are you going to do when it's about leaving this world behind and you have to decide who will take over the castle?" Belinda asked.  
  
"I've not found a good solution yet, to be quite honest," Sirius said, "It's mine and I'm slowly asking my way through our younger generations to see who would be interested. One thing is clear, if they sell it they have to share the proceeds. But I do hope they will just return to either live there or go there often to spend time at their parents' or grandparents' home..."   
  
"And that, I think, is the perfect word to finish our today's Most Special Couple show! Thank you very much for coming here and giving us this interview, Messrs Black and Potter, and Mrs Black-Miller. All that remains for me to do now is to wish all the best to you and still many good years together!" 


End file.
